


Princess of the Dhampirs

by thefangirldiaries



Category: Vampire Academy Series - Richelle Mead
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2017-05-16
Packaged: 2018-04-12 12:01:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 28
Words: 89,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4478594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefangirldiaries/pseuds/thefangirldiaries
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose has become a target for the Strigoi, and has finally returned to the royal court two weeks after she supposedly ran away. The Queen has deemed her a symbol for dhampir strength, who must be protected at all costs. Rose has to fall into her new role as Princess of the Dhampirs. Set during Spirit Bound.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the rights to Vampire Academy and the characters belong to Richelle Mead, of course.  
> This is my first fanfiction, and as an aspiring writer, I want to use this fanfiction as practice, and to help me grow as a writer. Enjoy!  
> \- thefangirldiaries

Lissa’s POV

I was pacing the room, using my phone to tap my chin. Why weren’t they here yet? I thought anxiously. The door opened, revealing Christian with Dimitri in tow. “What happened? The whole court is running around like chickens without their heads, even the guardians are acting weird,” Christian said. They don’t know yet. I took a deep breath through my nose to prepare myself for the words about to come out of my mouth, making it all true. “Rose is back. She’s being kept in guardian housing.” My voice cracked near the end, reminding me of my fragile emotional state right now. Christian beamed, it made me happy to know that Christian had come to care about Rose. His face then contorted into confusion and worry. I looked over at Dimitri, more concerned about his reaction to this news.  
His face was marble, cold and motionless. All of the basic features were there that made a person look human, except for the emotion. His body, however, was tense, like he was about to fight someone. I made a weak attempt to read his aura, but my erratic mind couldn’t focus hard enough. “I was waiting for you two, She asked for us,” I said, already heading to the suite's door. Christian's hand wrapped around my wrist, stopping me. “She did?” He sounded doubtful. “Yes,” I hissed, suddenly feeling pissed off that he would stop me. Christian looked at me for two seconds that lasted all too long. “Alright,” he nodded and released me, “let’s go.”  
The guards who delivered the news to me hadn’t told me what kind of condition Rose was in, but they looked concerned enough for their colleague for it to rub off on me. Guardians didn’t worry about scraped knees, they only worried about life and death.  
Dimitri silently followed us, but I knew he would rather sprint across court to see Rose ASAP. Despite his harsh words and cold attitude toward Rose before she ran away, I knew he still cared. I couldn’t find it within myself to prod him about it, since he was still struggling with leaving his Strigoi past behind him. He was doing what he thought necessary, but what I did was inexcusable. I pushed Rose away when she needed me most. She reached out to me, having always been there for me and I didn’t return the favor. No wonder she ran away.  
I tried my best to set those thoughts aside for now, I would come back to them tonight in bed. Right now I needed to get across court and be the friend to Rose I couldn’t be two weeks ago. Christian was right, the court was abuzz with the news of Rose’s return, making pedestrian’s eyes follow me and turn quickly back to their gossip. My teeth clenched, stupid people, stupid rumors… they’re going to make this even harder on Rose. I should give her more credit since she’s more than proven her strength and resilience to me before. Her resilience made it unbelievable that she would run away from her problems. I recalled the note that she had left for me which announced her departure:  
Liss, with everything that’s happened at court recently I don’t think I’m needed anymore. Hell, I’m not even wanted here, you and Dimitri have made that very clear. I’m not going to stay here where my friends hate me and I’m done dealing with this Adrian and Dimitri bullshit. I’m going back to the human world. I did it once and I can do it again, without you this time. You would only slow me down. I guess you could say I’m going rouge, since I plan on killing a lot of Strigoi. I gave Adrian his credit card back, so don’t even try to track my steps. If you do find me, you can guarantee I’ll be gone before you can get to me. Besides, who’s going to help you find a lowly guardian who couldn’t stay out of trouble? I’m not coming back. Tell the others I said good riddance.  
She didn’t leave a letter for anyone else, but it was clear I was to spread the message. The words burned themselves into my mind the first time I read it. The words still ran through my veins. She hated me, but I wasn’t going to abandon her. If she came back it was for a good reason, especially if she was asking for me. Part of me doubted that she ran away, or at least I didn’t think she was telling the truth in her letter.  
I felt something much more sinister was happening. Rose’s silver stake was left in her room, so how could she even kill Strigoi? All of her clothes and personal items were left untouched, and she didn’t have a lot of money without Adrian’s credit card. Nothing in her letter made sense, except for her hating us all. I would too.  
Once we were in the guardian’s housing building I made a beeline for the circulation desk. “Where is she?” Only an imbecile would ask who I was referring to. The female dhampir pointed to the elevators, “Third floor, there’s a guardian posted outside her door.” I admired her efficiency. I ran over and punched the up button on the elevator. I heard Christian mutter thanks to the woman as I left them in the dust. The elevator doors opened at their leisurely pace. I squeezed in the elevator before the five or so guardians could get out, making their exit awkward and lacking personal space.  
Christian and Dimitri got in after the guardians briskly walked away. My heels were tapping on the floor as soon as the doors closed, showing my impatience to get to Rose already. Why is there a guard watching her door? Seconds later, Dimitri asked the same thing, “Princess, do you think they’re protecting her or keeping her under custody?” Christian snorted, “Like they care about her well-being.” I gave him a sharp look which he was ignoring. “I don’t know Dimitri, I don’t think she needs protecting, though.” He understood what I was really trying to say, for which I was grateful.  
The number on the little screen turned from two to three. The elevator stopped moving. The doors opened, I could see two men in front of her door. Time slowed down. Two men? There was only supposed to be one guard. My feet started moving, but I felt like someone had pushed a slow motion button. Christian put his hand on the small of my back, urging me to keep moving. One of the men at the door was Ambrose, the other was Mikhail. Ambrose must be here by himself, so no extra guards for Rose. That was a good thing, right?  
“Princess Dragomir, Lord Ozera” Ambrose and Mikhail spoke as one. I gave my best attempt at a smile, “Hey. I don’t mean to cut the pleasantries but can we go in?” I asked, my voice growing terse. I was homesick, and Rose was my home right now. As much as I liked Ambrose and Mikhail, they were only obstacles for me to get to Rose. “This is off the books,” Mikhail lowered his voice and tilted his head down, “Hans said no visitors, but she’s been asking for you. You and Lord Ozera may go in.” Mikhail raised his hand to knock, “What about Dimitri?” Christian had asked, taking a step forward. Mikhail tensed, as if Christian were pointing a gun at him. “That,” Mikhail hissed, “would not be a good idea. Especially considering the state she’s in.” That statement felt like a slap in the face even though it wasn’t directed at me. Mikhail sounded so… hateful.  
“Excuse me?” This time it was Dimitri, his well controlled emotions only showed confusion, but his posture told me he was pissed. Mikhail met his gaze unwaveringly. “You heard me. Rose is hurt and confused right now, she needs her friends. She doesn’t need anyone to cause her more pain. I was there, the night she visited you in your cell, it’s no wonder she ran away.” Dimitri narrowed his eyes and his knuckles turned white, I feared what he would do if Mikhail made him snap. Rose was a touchy subject for Dimitri, as I’d learned these past two weeks. Before any fighting could occur, there was a noise from the other side of the door, a cough. “It’s okay Mikhail, I appreciate the concern but I asked for him to be here, too.” Rose! Her voice so small and barely audible from behind the door. Mikhail sighed, his shoulders sagged as he turned to open the door.  
I looked at Christian, then Dimitri. We all looked like deer caught in the headlights. This was it. Part of me expected to see her again, but Rose’s “never coming back” had become two weeks. The door opened. I wasn’t expecting anything close to what I saw.


	2. The Reunion

Rose's POV

“Go take a shower and get some rest, we’ll talk to you more tomorrow. No visitors until we’ve spoken.” That’s what Hans had said. Screw him. Ambrose promised he would send for my friends. I don’t know what happened to me in the last two weeks, or at least Hans said I’d been missing for that long. I don’t know where I was for that lost time period or how I got back, everything was like a trance, and the last two weeks just never existed.  
What I did know was that I felt like I had just come out of the movie Deliverance and I needed my friends with me more than ever. Just to see them and know that they’re okay. Maybe they know something about what happened to me.  
There were voices outside my door, but Mikhail and Ambrose hadn’t spoken in over half an hour. One of the voices was female, a voice I would remember anywhere, even with a door muffling her words. Finally. Lissa was so close that it hurt. The bond told me that she was anxious and excited. Surely Christian would be with her, quite possibly Adrian too. My mom would likely come later, if she was even at court anymore. Would Dimitri come? Is he still avoiding me? When would Mason and Eddie come?  
Mikhail's voice became curt and defensive, I moved close to the door to hear what he's saying. "... anyone to cause her more pain. I was there the night she visited you in your cell, it's no wonder she ran away." He must be talking to Dimitri. Ran away? I didn't run away... I tried to speak, my sore throat only produced a cough though. I tried again, getting a weak excuse of a voice to work, "It's okay Mikhail, I appreciate the concern but I asked for him to be here, too."  
I couldn't see any of their faces, and I'm not even sure they could hear me. Damn walls. The doorknob turned and the dark wood flung open. I saw Lissa for less than two seconds before my eyes watered and clouded my vision. "Rose!" Lissa cried and ran over to me. I think she wanted to collapse in my arms, but I was weak and collapsed onto her on impact, so we ended up in a really awkward hug with our knees bent, like a weird crouch.  
Now I was full out sobbing into Lissa's shoulder, damn emotions. Lissa was crying too, smoothing my hair down. “Oh God, Rose. What happened to you?” This doesn’t feel right, I should be comforting her. We stayed like that for what felt like an hour, a cough from behind Lissa made her release me.  
As soon as I was standing straight I was swept up by a pair of weak spaghetti arms. Christian! His hug was surprisingly tight and made my bruises and cuts hurt. Instead of complaining, I laughed, "It's good to see you too, Sparky!" Christian put me down gently and patted my shoulder, "You look like hell. Where did you even go?" He tried to come off as nonchalant but I could sense his concern. His question made me uneasy. "Let's get to those topics after I've had some sleep," I say, knowing full well that the topic could result in a day long conversation, with more questions than answers. He nodded and had the decency to look a little ashamed of asking me in the first place. Lissa tugged on his arm to pull him away from me.  
At first I just thought that she wanted to give me space, but then I remembered what- who- was making Mikhail upset. Dimitri. There he was. He looked so much more human than the nightmares, so much more alive. This was the Dimitri I knew, the Dimitri who the Strigoi had tried to take away from me. His face hardened as he looked me over and studied all of my cuts and bruises and blood. I surprised us both by running forward and throwing myself into his embrace. When his arms caught me, his lips grazed my temple. Was he going in for a kiss? No. He wouldn't, not after what he said in the church. Right?  
Whether or not he was going to kiss me, he held me tight. Though his muscles tensed around me he seemed to relax more. His tight hug felt far more comfortable than Christians. I had forgotten about Dimitri’s ability to balance his strength with gentleness. “I’m glad you’re back. You should never have left,” he murmured softly. Why does everyone keep saying that I left, ran away? Against my own instinct and desires, I pulled away from Dimitri and glared at him. Love fades, mine has. First he pushes me away, now he wants to patronize me? He wasn’t going to get away with that.  
Lissa was suddenly behind me, tugging on my elbow. I should have noticed her coming up behind me, I was quickly losing my Rose Hathaway kick ass guardian skills. She led me to the bed in the large suite, sitting me down. She sat next to me and wrapped one arm around me. “Rose you look so…” Lissa bit her lip, unsure how to finish her sentence. “You look like a sack of crap that’s been used as a punching bag,” Christian said easily. Lissa glared at him but didn’t correct him.  
I hadn’t looked in the mirror tonight but I knew I felt pretty close to that description. Mikhail did a good job with the first aid, despite that I knew there was some mystery gunk in my hair and under my nails and all over my clothes that scarily resembled dried blood, too much blood for it to belong to only me. I literally have blood on my hands, but whose? I shrugged, “I said I would talk more later, there’s a lot I don’t even know and it’s just going to give me a headache now.”  
Lissa rubbed soothing circles on my back. I looked up at her, her beautiful features always reminded me of an angel. Right now I felt like she was my own guardian angel. That thought both comforted me and made my stomach twist. I don’t need protecting. They come first. I had to look away from her or I’d start crying again. I moved my gaze over to Dimitri, who was staring at my neck where my hair had fallen behind my shoulder. The murderous look in his eyes made me curious, I touched the place where he was looking.  
I felt more of what I suspected to be blood, but this blood was mine. My fingers ran over many small puncture marks, too many to count. My eyes widened in shock, I immediately moved my hair to cover it, hoping Lissa and Christian hadn’t seen. My shock quickly turned into confusion and anger. I don’t remember being bitten… recently. And who the hell had the right to bite me that many times?! I had a sick feeling that the culprit wasn’t Adrian, or any Moroi for that matter. I looked back to Dimitri, he was already watching me, still looking pissed off and terrifying.  
“Do you need anything? Do you think you can take a shower on your own? I should bring you something to eat. When’s the last time you ate? Do you want me to stay with you tonight? We could order Chinese food, my treat,” Lissa rambled, making me smile. She got anxious when she was worried about me, I’d seen this happen after particularly brutal training sessions that left a physical mark. I would normally refuse her help, but I wanted to keep her close to me right now, so I let this time be the exception. “I’m tired but I don’t want to sleep. I can take a shower on my own, thanks,” I laughed at her doe eyed expression, “I would like shrimp fried rice and orange chicken. We can watch something on Netflix before going to bed.”  
Lissa smiled, I could almost see the halo around her golden hair. Christian pouted, “Sure, just disclude the guys, no really! It’s okay. We don’t mind.” He put up his hands to mock defensiveness, making both Lissa and I laugh. “You guys can stay too, I could use the company,” I offered. This surprised Christian and Dimitri, usually I wasn’t this nice and amiable, but I really did want the company. I didn’t trust the direction of my thoughts if I were left alone tonight.  
Dimitri agreed to stay for a while, which honestly surprised me. I was utterly confused by him and frankly I felt a little awkward being around him, even though I was thankful for his presence tonight. What would Adrian say? That doesn’t matter, I’m not cheating. Christian shrugged and threw himself into one of the chairs, simultaneously kicking off his shoes, “I guess I could stay,” he sighed as if I had just asked him for an inconvenient favor. “I have to make sure you don’t put any moves on my girl. She’s a sucker for the vulnerable ones,” Christian pointed at me, his smile telling me it was all a joke. But. “I am not vulnerable,” I hissed, all the lighthearted feelings in the room evaporated with the heat coming off of me.  
Lissa touched my shoulder, "But you're weak. Let me heal you." Memories of darkness and madness clouded my thoughts. "No." I shot up from the bed and made my way to the bathroom, “I’ll be in the shower, go ahead and pick a movie.” I slammed the door behind me and made sure to lock it. I avoided making eye contact with the mirror as I turned the shower knob as far as it would go. I stripped off the smelly, dirty, bloody and torn clothes. The clothes were so gross that I considered throwing them in the steaming shower to squash the stench, but the clothes might have important evidence on them. Hopefully I wasn’t about to wash any evidence off of my body.  
The steam beckoned to me, but before I could get behind the curtain my curiosity won out and I looked to see what was so startling to everyone else. I didn’t recognize myself, not in the slightest form. The Rose I knew had dark brown hair. This girl had clumpy red and black splotches for hair. The Rose I knew had a full figure from working out and eating plenty. This girl was lighter and dark circles under her eyes indicated that she was malnourished. The Rose I knew had exotic desert princess features like naturally tanned skin. This girl had red and black and purple skin, and underneath all that she was as pale as a ghost. This girl wasn’t Rose. She wasn’t me.  
You’re not going to be the infamous Rosemarie Hathaway that plagues Strigoi when I’m done with you. You’ll be nothing, and when I give you back to the Moroi, they won’t even want you. There wasn’t a face to go with the sinister words, only chalk white lips and sharp fangs. Those words were from some sort of nightmare. I didn’t even notice I was trembling until my hands gripped the porcelain sink to keep me upright.

*****

Showers were the amazing and undiscovered seventh element of magic. I took my own sweet time, I think Lissa and the guys finished a full movie before I got out. I used an entire bottle of mint and lilac shampoo and half a bottle of conditioner to get all the grime and blood out of my hair. I used almost all of the body wash and a full bar of soap to scrub every inch of my body until I felt clean again. The hot water helped to ease some of the soreness in my muscles. I also cried for a long time, letting my tears mix with the running water, and after I had no more tears left in me I felt like I could breathe easier.  
It’s too bad you can’t wash away the circles under your eyes, or the thoughts that put them there.  
Lissa came through with my food request, making my love her even more. I didn’t even know how ravenous I felt until the smell of rice and chicken hit me. Having a full stomach really makes a difference. So does wearing clean clothes. Here’s some advice if you’re having a shitty day: take a long shower, put on clean and comfortable clothes and eat something that doesn’t come in a cardboard box. Dimitri excused himself almost immediately after we finished our food, and Christian left shortly after. My exhaustion was catching up to me, at this point Lissa insisted that we get some sleep. Lissa and I were under the covers and talking in the dark, just like our sleepovers had always been, only the subject material had changed considerably. Boys just weren’t worth whispering about in the dark anymore. This time we talked about vampires and nightmares and demons that were all too real.  
What would I see when I closed my eyes?

*****

My dreams were just about to take a turn for the worse with Dimitri (because wasn’t it always Dimitri who haunted my dreams?) when a knock on the door woke me. It took me a few moments to get my bearings, for my mind had to catch up with yesterday's events. My memories began the moment I crossed the border for the invisible wards of the royal court.  
Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I made my way to the door, only sparing a glance for Lissa sleeping peacefully in my bed, the bond told me she was having happy dreams, or at least dreams much more pleasant than mine. I spared a second of thought for Adrian, why didn’t he visit me? “Eddie, hey,” I smiled. Mikhail wasn’t here anymore. Eddie took me by surprise and bear hugged me, “Holy shit, Rose. I should be so angry with you right now, after what you said in that letter to Lissa. But Hans just told me about the note that was sent to the queen and I have no idea what’s going on. I knew you wouldn’t run away.” What letter? I hugged Eddie back, happy enough to see him. He must be the new guard posted outside my door. Was Hans only allowing my friends to guard me? Would Mason take next watch? Eddie released me, giving me a small smile.  
“What do you mean, Eddie? What note did the queen get?” I asked, hoping to fill in one of the many blanks in my head. Eddie pursed his lips, “Well, that’s why I’m here. The queen has requested your presence immediately in the throne room. She has questions.” Ugh, doesn’t everyone have questions? And I was already dealing with Hans, did I really have to deal with that sanctimonious bitch, too?  
“Alright,” I groaned, “let me get dressed.”


	3. The Meeting

Rose’s POV

The sunlight on my skin felt like experiencing Lissa perform healing magic through the bond. It was warm and embracing and everything right with the world. I could only enjoy the sunset for a few moments before Eddie was ushering me toward the throne room. I kept a pleasant enough smile on my face the whole way there. “Have you gotten a charge yet? I know I really screwed things up for you, but I thought a handful of Moroi were still interested enough,” I started, hoping this conversation wouldn’t make Eddie upset.  
Eddie smiled, a rare one that reached his eyes, “Yeah, a Drozdov lord hired me a couple days ago, he’s increasing his guard detail. Matthew Drozdov, he’s Princess Ava’s little cousin. I start tomorrow.” This news made me immensely happy, and all my guilt of ruining his chances at guardianship vanished. I knew Eddie would make an amazing guardian. “And what about Mason? Has he gotten hired yet?” Eddie stopped walking, I turned around to see him staring incredulously at me, “That’s not funny, Rose.” His voice was ice, piercing through all the warmth from the sun.  
My brows furrowed in confusion as Eddie walked right past me. I had to jog to keep up with his new brisk pace. “What gives? I haven’t seen him since I got back. Am I not allowed to ask about my friend?” I demanded, I grabbed Eddie’s shoulder to force him to stop walking and look at me. He was shaking. “Eddie, what’s wrong?” His searched my eyes for a long time. What was he looking for, mockery? Well, whatever he found it made his face drop, “You really don’t know, do you? What the hell happened to you out there?” Eddie seemed extremely sad, especially to be talking about carefree and lighthearted Mason.  
I swallowed, fearing the question and the answer, “Eddie, where’s Mason?”  
Eddie closed his eyes, he took a deep breath, “We’ll talk about it after you’ve met with the queen, I promise. Right now you need to worry about what Her Majesty wants to say to you.” And once again Eddie was moving too fast for a leisurely walk. I couldn’t get Mason out of my head now, the way Eddie reacted to his name. Fear started to take over, there’s only one thing Eddie would want to keep from me, and it wasn’t Mason getting a puppy or becoming a member of the royal guard.  
I got out of breath before reaching the throne room, damn I was out of shape. I thought that the throne room was an odd choice for a meeting place, but it wasn’t my job to critique the venues. The throne room was decorated in Ivashkov red: tapestries, carpets and the velvet on the throne itself. Queen Tatiana Ivashkov herself looked regal in a white business suit with a light purple dress shirt to contrast the vivid red in the room. She sat with a stick straight back on the throne, only standing after I bowed to her.  
Standing near her was Dimitri. Why the hell is he here? I recalled the maybe kiss from last night, I had to look at the ground to hide my slight blush. “Thank you Guardian Castille, that will be all for now,” the queen dismissed Eddie with the wave of her hand. Eddie squeezed my hand for encouragement before leaving the room. Tatiana smiled at me, a genuine smile that actually reached her eyes.  
“How are you feeling Miss Hathaway?” she asked. It was pleasant enough, but something about her wording bothered me. “I’m feeling better than yesterday, your Majesty. With all due respect, Miss? Not Guardian Hathaway?” I asked, well aware of the dangerous territory I was walking into. My voice was laced with a challenge that I couldn’t help but include. How dare they strip me of my title.  
Tatianna wasn’t fazed, “I’m glad you’re feeling better Rosemarie. And as for your title… well, that’s why we’re here today.” Great. I was still confused as to how this involved Dimitri. “I’m all ears,” I say, spreading my hands open in a resigned gesture. If she was going to tell me I was nothing more than a blood whore she might as well get it over with.  
Tatiana gestured to a coffee table that didn’t seem like it belonged in this extravagant room. All three of us sat down, “Where are your guards?” I asked. Tatiana’s lips flattened, “There posted outside the doors, this is a private matter, in which I’m entrusting Guardian Belikov with.” I almost fell out of my chair, “You’re officially a guardian again!” I directed at Dimitri, unable to contain my happiness and Dimitri gave me a small smile of disbelief. Tatiana studied this interaction with shrewd eyes. That made me uncomfortable for some reason.  
Dimitri looked just as surprised as I had at this news. “Yes, he is one of our best guardians, despite what people believe about his transformation,” Tatiana faced Dimitri, “You have been given a new assignment. Starting immediately." Dimitri nodded, “Who is my charge?” Tatiana smirked, “Rosemarie.”  
My heart stopped beating. “What?” She couldn’t be serious. “Excuse me, your Majesty, I think I mis-”  
“You didn’t mishear me. Guardian Belikov’s duty is to protect you.”  
“That’s ridiculous, I don’t need a guardian.”  
“Yes. You do.”  
“I’m a guardian.”  
“Not anymore.”  
I took in a sharp breath through my teeth. Water started to collect in my eyes. No. I will not cry in front of her. I bit down on my tongue to stop the tears from flowing. Dimitri had been silent since he was given my name, he looked confused and upset. Same here. I looked back at Tatiana, ready to fight my way through this with Rose logic.  
“I don’t need protecting.”  
“Yes. You do,” she repeated, but this time with more annoyance. I glared at her. She met my gaze evenly, there was a secret on the tip of her tongue. There was mischief in her eyes. “I have much to tell you, Rosemarie. Let me explain,” it wasn’t a request, but she waited for my small nod before continuing.  
“Nobody knows for sure where you were for the past two weeks, but I have evidence that leads me to believe you were taken by Strigoi. I heard about the letter you left for your friends, and I'll admit that is a bit confusing. We'll look more into it later. This lead means there are Moroi and dhampirs within court walls are helping Strigoi get information and other things," like live bodies, "I received a message from a man who I knew quite well when he was still a Moroi.  
"This message regards you, Rosemarie,” she reached into her pocket and pulled out a white piece of crumbled paper. She slid it across the table to me, I looked to Dimitri, unsure of what to do. He nodded, urging me to go along with whatever the queen was doing.  
I picked up the note, choosing to read it aloud for Dimitri to hear, “‘It seems your well accomplished Rosemarie isn’t as indestructible as you had thought. Let this serve as a taste of what is to come. Once she falls, you will follow. V.I.’” My head was spinning and at the same time all conscious thoughts fluttered away. A taste of what is to come? I raised my eyes to the queen, a million questions in my eyes. Tatiana saw that and gave me an understanding nod.  
Dimitri interrupted anything she might have said, "What about the letter that Rose left for Princess Dragomir?" finally, answer time. "I didn't leave a letter." I said, but I it's possible I did, since I couldn't remember anything after seeing Dimitri in church. Love fades, mine has.  
"Yes, I read the letter," the queen continued as if she hadn't heard me. "Honestly it doesn't sound like something Rose would say. She's rude and blunt but I could never see her saying those things to her friends, especially Vasilisa," the queen replied calmly. Thanks guys, like I'm not right here. "I suspect compulsion has a hand in this."  
My eyebrows furrowed, "It's very hard to compel me." That was true, my experience with Lissa compelling others through the bond has made me less susceptible to it. Tatiana looked like she was getting bored, "Not if you were high off of endorphins and weak from blood loss." See tipped her head forward, looking at my neck. I quickly brushed my hair forward, I hadn't realized my neck was exposed.  
"We can get to the details later, Rosemarie. I have a more pressing issue to discuss with you." Her piercing eyes compelled me, figuratively. I mentally prepared myself for whatever could be more pressing than Moroi and dhampirs assisting Strigoi.  
“You’ve killed many Strigoi, more so in the last year than many guardians kill in their lifetime. The Strigoi have begun to notice you as a serious threat to their existence- one they plan to eliminate. The Strigoi aren’t the only ones who have recognized your power and importance. Vladimir was right, in the message he sent me. If you die at the hand of a Strigoi, the Moroi and dhampirs will suffer a great loss, a loss that will give the Strigoi an advantage over us,” Her eyes were searing into me, imploring me to understand what she was saying. My mind was still a blank canvas and Tatiana was asking me to see a picture from her marks of black on white.  
“Excuse me, your Highness,” Dimitri spoke up, his words were coming slowly. He was just as shocked as I was, “Are you saying that the Strigoi are planning an attack on Rose’s life?” Well, it wouldn’t be the first time. Tatiana shrugged, “I don’t know if they’re organizing an attack, no. I do know that you, Rose, are no longer just another dhampir to them. You are the biggest threat since the late Guardian Schoenberg, and I don’t think it was a coincidence that his household was raided.” My mouth dried up as her words started to make their way into my conscious.  
I wasn’t a guardian to the Strigoi. I was a target, my dead body was a power play for them. Tatiana looked at me with sympathy in her eyes, “Rose, I know how this seems to you, but there is an opportunity here. An opportunity that will challenge the Strigoi, but it puts you at risk, and that is why I demand Belikov’s presence with you at all times.” The picture was starting to become more clear in my head, the canvas being filled with more colors and shapes. I was beginning to get scared, not something I like feeling. My throat was so dry that I could barely speak, “W-what opportunity?”  
Tatiana smiled, happy to see me cooperating. “We look the Strigoi in the eye and refuse to give them what they want: you. Rosemarie, guardians around the world know your name, you are the reckless girl who can’t be defeated. You are a symbol for strength and power. A symbol that if lost, will cause us all to lose hope for fighting the Strigoi. Vasilisa and myself are also symbols for our kind.” A symbol for strength and power. Why was she comparing me to royalty?  
“So you want to hole me up for my own protection? That’s ridiculous, I can’t be a symbol for strength if I’m being a coward. I won’t hide. I can’t hide,” I was breathing heavy now, this was all too much. I’m not a symbol, I’m a teenage girl. I’m not powerful, and I most certainly don’t feel strong right now. Tatiana was losing her patience with me, her eyes narrowed, all sympathy gone.  
“Listen here, you foolish child. You will not be hiding. I believe the Strigoi kidnapped you to put fear in the Moroi. You may not agree with this but you are widely admired and well respected as a guardian, despite your reckless behavior. Whatever happened to you,” she gestured to my face, “it was a warning to us. The Strigoi won’t give us another warning. They will kill you.  
"If they get their hands on you then there will be fear, panic and chaos within my kingdom’s walls, and I will not let that happen. The Strigoi will expect me to put you into hiding and build up walls around you. I’m doing the exact opposite here- I am giving you more power. And not just you, but all dhampirs. At midnight I will be making the announcement of your new position on the council.”  
The picture was almost complete, the indescript shapes had become familiar figures and two pairs of eyes surveyed a crowd.  
Her words made my head reel. Council! She was crazy, “The council is for Moroi.” Tatiana pressed her lips into a hard line, “I think it’s time the dhampirs had more say in their own politics. You cannot actively guard as a member of the council, your priorities will be to reflect the wants and needs of all dhampir kind in regards to the law. I trust your judgement, though we will have to work on your attitude. Considering the age decree that recently passed, we need a dhampir opinion more than ever. I expect you to be on better behavior than the last time you voiced it, though.” Nice backhanded compliment. My head was really hurting now. Tatiana didn’t agree with the age decree, I wasn’t even going to ask questions about that right now.  
“So, what. I’ll become a councilwoman for dhampir matters? Won’t that make the Strigoi want to attack me even more?” My head was pounding, or my heart, I couldn’t tell anymore. Dimitri sat there, taking it all in and not breathing a word. Tatiana considered my words, “Probably, but most importantly, it will increase your power amongst dhampirs and Moroi alike. We will not cower under the Strigoi gaze, we will look them head on. And you wouldn’t just be a ‘councilwoman’. All members of the council derive from a royal bloodline.” Her eyes once again help a hidden message.  
The picture was complete. It was a portrait in which I was wearing elegant robes of gold and black, and a tiara, facing an angry crowd of Strigoi. Dimitri was by my side, wearing guardian black and white. This picture made me sick. How could I be the inspirational Rose Hathaway if I let others fight my battles for me? Back in the throne room, the look in Tatiana’s eyes told me that doing this would be a whole other kind of battle, one that was not ideal to me in any sense, but I couldn’t deny that this would put us ahead of the Strigoi. That’s all that mattered, right? I took all of the strength I had from Lissa, who had grown up in a life that was being thrown at me. I raised my head high and looked at my queen. She saw that my decision had been made, though it wasn’t much of a choice.  
“As of midnight, you will become Princess Rosemarie Hathaway, Princess of the Dhampirs.”


	4. The Coronation

Dimitri's POV

Most guardians at court could leave their charges for extended periods of time and have some free time, since the royal court was so well protected. There wasn't fear of the Moroi attacking each other. I wouldn't have that luxury. The queen put Rose in danger by giving her a council seat. I don't imagine Rose will have to fear the dhampirs, who will more than likely support her. I will have to protect her from the Moroi who don't want the dhampirs to have a say in their own matters, Moroi like Rufus Tarus.

The queen glossed over some details about the ceremony and palace housing, "Most guards live separately from their charges here, but with your controversial position Dimitri will have to share a suite with you. Don't worry, two bedrooms will be provided." Rose left as soon as she was dismissed with watery eyes, but her head remained high. Her all too thin frame looked unnatural with her simply average height. Wherever she'd been, she obviously hadn't eaten much.

She was doing what she thought Lissa would do, putting on her best face and keeping her thoughts to herself. It was so unlike Rose, who always told people what she thought, no matter how much it hurt to hear. I was confident Rose could fit into her new role as princess, she would have the support of her friends and family, and me. The queen stood, I followed. Should I go after Rose? The queen sighed, "I hope you know how serious this is, Guardian Belikov. Rosemarie is extremely young, and she wasn't raised for royal politics. She will be under speculation by everyone at court, even some dhampirs will be upset that I chose her and not an older, more experienced guardian for the role, perhaps even her mother." I hadn't thought of that.

"I will do everything in my power to protect her," I bowed my head, knowing how true that was. The queen gave a knowing smile, "I know. I do believe your personal feelings will aid your cause in this case." I simply nodded, but my head was reeling. Adrian must have told his aunt all about Rose's past love interests. I was starting to resent the queen for putting Rose in danger, but I couldn't deny that this would benefit the dhampirs. There was too much to think about right now... I needed some hot chocolate.

I made my way to Rose's room in guardian housing. There were loud voices behind her door, it sounded like a fight. I knocked on the door, hoping I wouldn't have to break it down. Moments later Rose opened the door, she stepped aside to let me in.

Eddie was sitting on the couch on the far wall, his face in his hands. Lissa was still in Rose's pajamas, pacing the room, "This is bullshit! She's making you princess? She might as well be signing your death certificate. No doubt Rufus and his followers will try to kill you." I had never seen Lissa behave this way, she was acting like Rose. Surprisingly, Rose remained calm, her face was wiped clean of all emotion, "Well, she gave me a guardian. I'm Dimitri's charge now," three pairs of eyes fell on me. I didn't like having the attention on me, I wish someone would say something. Rose shook her head, "Liss, she's doing us a favor if you think about it. I have my mother and father- I make the quorum requirements. Think about it, she's giving you back your council seat through me." Father… I vaguely remember Lissa telling me that Zmey is Rose's biological father, who suddenly took an interest in being present in Rose's life. That thought both comforted me and scared me. Zmey was a name to be feared, hopefully he would use his resources to help protect Rose.

Lissa's eyes widened, "Do you really think that? And what happens when I have kids and make the quorum requirements?" She was turning her shock and anger on Rose, but Rose knew how to handle Lissa's emotions. She shrugged, "I keep my council seat, or go back to guarding. I don't know. The queen has turned me into some symbol so that she can challenge the Strigoi. I'm just a pawn here. I don't want to be princess, but Queen Tatiana was right, it's necessary to keep the Strigoi from overpowering us. If there's one thing I've learned from you it's that when you have a chance to protect your people, you take it. No matter how much it hurts, no matter what you really want."

By then end of her little speech her voice had doubled in volume she was getting red in the face. At that moment I was in awe of Rose's resilience, she wasn't going to go down easily. She would make an amazing princess. Lissa could do nothing but stare in wonder, "I just can't believe this is happening. You're royalty, Rose."

Rose narrowed her eyes, "And I'm also your guardian. Even though they stripped me of that title, don't think for a second that it changes anything. You're still my first priority." Lissa smiled and moved to hug Rose, "And you're my priority. You're going to need a guardian princess to show you the political ropes. God knows what kind of trouble you'd cause without me." The girls dissolved into laughter, but I could still sense the unease and anxiety in Rose.

Eddie stood up, I had almost forgotten he was there. "I think I should be going," he mumbled, his face cast to the floor. Rose pulled away from Lisaa and moved to grab Eddie's elbow, "Wait! You said we would talk more…" the last part was a whisper, fear mixed with hope creeped into her voice. Eddie looked like he had aged 50 years just from hearing that sentence. "Rose, I think you know what I would say," he kissed Rose's forehead and left the room.

I had no idea what that was about, but whatever it was it made Rose upset. Her whole body was quivering and I had to physically stop myself from rushing to her side. Lissa was waving her hands in front of Rose's face but Rose just stared off into space and shook. After a few moments she started blinking rapidly, "He's dead. Isn't he? Oh God, Mason is dead." Rose broke down and started sobbing, this time I did go to her.

Lissa and I were speechless. Mason… his death nearly destroyed Rose. I couldn't bare to see her go down that road again.

I remember Spokane, I remember finding my heart in Spokane after it had gone missing, but I found it broken. I can still see her on that floor, holding Mason's limp body. I had nightmares for weeks from seeing Rose so broken and hopeless. There was so much blood in that room, and I thought it was hers at first. After all, she was covered in it… How could Rose forget that? Lissa was kneeling next to Rose so I knelt on her other side, I reached out to touch her arm.

I had to say something, to get her to stop hurting so much. I opened my mouth then closed it. What was there to say? She was reliving one of the worst moments in her life right now. Lissa spoke first, "Yes, Mason's gone. You've seen his ghost, you saw him move on." Rose's sobs subsided into hiccups, "I think… I think I remember that. It happened last winter, before the attack, didn't it?" she asked. Yes, of course it did. Rose couldn't forget something like that.

Has Rose finally gone through so much trauma that her mind has been erasing painful memories? I almost wish that were the case, Rose deserved the bliss of ignorance after all that's happened. Lissa nodded. Rose sighed, one of those deep sighs that make a person's chest move inward, like the air had been pushed out of them. Her fist was pressing to her stomach and her face contorted as she made a high pitched noise. It was painful to hear. I grabbed her shoulders, "Rose, Roza, look at me." I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to say, but like every time before, one look into her eyes told me exactly what I needed to say.

"Mason's at peace, Lissa said so herself. He moved on. You did too. Eddie and all of Mason's friends have moved on. It's all in the past, don't let that haunt you now." Something in Rose changed, she took a deep breath and smiled. I could see how fake the smile was, but I wasn't going to push her. "You're right, I have to worry about midnight," it broke my heart to see her bottling up her emotions like this. Rose looked to Lissa, "I need a dress."

The coronation ceremony was held under the pretense of an open-to-public council meeting in the courtroom. Rose and I were seated in the front row of benches, which got us a lot of questioning looks. Apparently the queen had made arrangements for Janine and Zmey to be there too, and they sat on the other side of Rose. Janine kept fussing over Rose's unhealthy appearance, her father just studied her with narrowed eyes.

Rose and Lissa had chosen a knee length sundress of deep purple. Lissa said it complimented her well and the color screamed royalty. Rose said it didn't look too much like the "royal bullshit" the Moroi wear. Rose's hands were flexing and unflexing in her lap, every now and then she'd wipe them on the lap of her dress. She was doing a good job at keeping her nerves down, but Janine kept asking questions that would make her flinch. "Why did the queen fly us out, Rose? Why are we sitting here? Are you in some kind of trouble? What's with the dress and makeup?" Rose wouldn't give her mom a direct answer, she just kept saying, "I don't know what's going on," and I think that was partly true. I wish I could tell Janine to shut up.

Everyone else was there, Lissa with Christian, Tasha, Adrian (who still hasn't spoken to Rose), Mikhail, etc. The room was flooded with royals from all families, everyone looking confused by the sudden meeting. The Princes and Princesses were seated at the raised table facing the crowd, there were three empty chairs. One for the not yet present queen, one for Lissa who wouldn't be allowed to sit there, and one for Rose.

The whole ceremony was a blur. Our queen made a grand entrance, wearing thick gowns and her crown. She gave a moving speech about dhampir strength and the fight against Strigoi. When she called Rose up, I could sense the shock and disbelief in the room. Rose may have been beaten and malnourished, but she was graceful as she knelt in front of the queen. Tatiana was wrong, Rose wasn't fit to be a princess.

She was a goddess.

The queen didn't need to give me an assignment to know that it was my duty to protect Rose. I will always want to protect her. I've regretted the words "Love fades, mine has" ever since they crossed my lips. I still love her, her disappearance nearly killed me. At this moment, seeing her stand with royalty, I only found her even more beautiful than when I first fell in love.

Once the words "Princess Rosemarie Mazur Hathaway" crossed the queen's lips there was a collective gasp of disbelief. Janine blanched, Zmey looked outwardly surprised for once. There was a long second of pure silence, then the screams started. Moroi were shouting, there was a rift between those cheering in encouragement and those screaming in protest. Rose faced the crowd without batting an eye, she kept her head high and I could see the hint of a grimace on her lips.

The guards were as confused as everyone else, but they immediately responded to the danger and Rose's new position by moving closer to her, I joined them. The queen stood by Rose with her hand on the new princess's shoulder. She was saying something to Rose that I couldn't hear. Rose was nodding along in agreement. She met my eyes and jerked her head to the door.

I moved to her side, Mikhail, Eddie and a girl I believed was named Meredith reached Rose at the same time I did. Together we flanked the princess to get her out of the chaos and to her new secure room in palace housing. Janine shot up from her seat and joined us, followed by Zmey, eventually Tasha and Adrian with Lissa and Christian followed suit. Several others tried to follow the group out but, thankfully, guardians moved to block the exit. The doors barely muffled the noise from inside.

Once we were in the moonlight Rose began to sway and laughing hysterically. Zmey chuckled without much humor. The rest of us looked to each other, uncertainty in our eyes. "Rose?" Adrian got behind her and put his hands on her hips which I'll admit made me jealous. "I haven't eaten today, could we get some food?" I don't know who she was asking since she was looking up at the stars. Before anyone could reply, Rose collapsed to the ground.


	5. Rose's New Home

Rose's POV

I woke up in a room that was completely alien to me. I would have liked to look around and get familiar with it, but I had a guest waiting to talk to me. Adrian. One look at his face and I knew exactly what he was going to say. I wasn’t prepared for this but I wasn’t going to stop it, either. This needed to happen.  
I sat myself up and scooted over to the edge of the bed, ignoring my headache. I lifted my hand to touch his shoulder but I thought better of it. I was missing for two weeks and he didn't visit me upon my return. If that isn't a red flag, I don't know what is. "'Done with this Dimitri and Adrian bullshit'? What does that even mean Rose? You broke up with me through a letter to Lissa?" I wanted my memories back more than ever. "Adrian I never.." I began but he cut me off, "I read his aura, you know. He obviously loves you. You said he wanted nothing to do with you."  
It was barely past lunch time and my whole world had been turned over and over, so many times that it's begun to spin. "He did say that! I wasn't lying, Adrian. And I honestly know anything about this stupid letter! I haven’t even read it yet." I was getting upset against my better judgement. I wanted to speak to Adrian calmly, not cause a fight. I couldn’t help the defensiveness in my voice, Adrian was attacking me with words.  
Adrian searched my eyes for the truth, his expression turned from rage to a deep sadness. I decided that I would rather have him angry with me. "My aunt said you were compelled to write that letter," he paused, studying my face. I shrugged, not knowing what to say. "I guess I can't blame you for that one. I shouldn't even blame you for your feelings or his. It's hard not to though. And now he's living with you..." He shook his head, laughing without humor.  
"Little dhampir, you are a train wreck." He didn't mean it as an insult but the words bit me anyway because he was right. "Adrian, I love you.”  
"I know, and I love you. But you also love him in a different way than you love me, don’t you? And he loves you, a lot. His aura is almost blinding when he’s around you,” I so did not need to be hearing this right now. “I asked you to give me a chance, and you did. I competed with a dead guy, so it was easy for you to be with me, but now he's not dead. I can't compete with him." If the topic wasn’t so serious I would scold him for calling my relationship status a competition. I was about to protest but I couldn't see the point. He was right and I couldn't even say that I wish he was wrong.  
Adrian saw that I was thinking exactly that. He clenched his jaw, "Well, I guess this is goodbye then." He stood up and took two steps before I grabbed his arm, "Adrian, wait-" I couldn’t get out another word because suddenly his lips were on mine. The kiss took me so off guard and it was sloppy at first, but soon I had my fingers in his hair, pulling his face closer to mine if possible. Right as the kiss was getting passionate, he broke away. We were both breathing heavy, Adrian touched his lips, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.  
"I need to stop lying to myself. We can't be together anymore. I'll see you around, little dhampir." He stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Despite how much that hurt, I was never more proud of Adrian. He finally stopped believing his vices were virtues, he wasn't using me as a crutch to be a better man anymore.  
I wish I was more saddened by the breakup, but I mostly felt relief. I didn't even realize how much my little love triangle was weighing on me until Adrian walked out. But that didn't mean I was going to jump in head first with Dimitri, we had our own issues. I didn't have time to focus on my love life at all, now that I had to learn how to be a princess. With a sigh I promised myself that I would stay single for a long time. It would be difficult, especially having Dimitri around 24/7, but it was necessary. I was going to make the dhampirs proud, not concern myself with who was in my bed.  
I grabbed sweats and a large T-shirt from the moving boxes in my new room. When I walked into the living room I had seven pairs of sympathetic eyes fall on me, the old man looked like he was going to kill something. I would have to talk him out of doing the things to Adrian he threatened him with if my heart was ever broken. “I didn’t know it was a party,” I said casually, taking the nearest seat which was next to Tasha. She patted my knee and smiled, “We were just talking about how crazy this all is. But it’s a good thing, the dhampirs need more power in our government.” She was beaming now, all sympathy forgotten.  
The others started a heated conversation about my new occupation, all the pros and cons. I’d been having this same conversation in my head all day, I was sick of it. Since they were more focused on talking to each other I was able to sneak away into the kitchen. I had to feel up and down the wall in the entryway to find the light switch.  
When I lit the place up I dropped my jaw. My kitchen was the most gorgeous thing I had ever laid eyes on. There was an island and breakfast bar, marble counters, a double door fridge, stainless steel appliances for every type of food and drink and black wood cabinets that went on for days. The room was a hybrid kitchen and dining room, the black wood dining table was very square and modern, Ikea probably, and it seated up to twelve people. I don’t know how I could possibly use all this space, but I loved it anyway.  
I ignored the sick feeling I got from being spoiled. I didn’t deserve this, but I was going to earn it by being the best damn dhampir princess ever. Lissa came in seconds later with a large brown paper bag, “I know you probably shouldn’t have Chinese two days in a row, but you don’t have any food here.” Now I was the one beaming. Nobody came looking for us so we ate together in peace. Hopefully I would still get my needed dosage of Lissa as a princess, I couldn’t do this without my best friend. Lissa paused with her fork halfway to her mouth, “You know how cliché we are? The bestie princesses… It’s like we came out of a children’s bedtime story.”

 

Everyone eventually left the suite once I convinced them I needed more rest. I wasn’t tired; I just couldn’t stand their prying eyes. Lissa opted to get Dimitri and I groceries, I honestly don’t know what I would do without her. I wasn’t to leave my suite until further notice from the queen, the announcement was too controversial and I needed to lay low for a while. I decided to help Dimitri put his things away. He left the door open but I knocked on the frame anyway. “Rose, is everything okay?”  
“Yeah, I’m just bored. It’s only dinner time and I have to stay here for at least two more days before showing my face,” I groaned, leaning onto the door frame. Dimitri’s face softened, “I can’t imagine you’re seriously bored after a day like today.” It wasn’t exactly a joke, but it was close enough in Dimitri terms. I couldn’t help but grin. I nodded to his boxes, “I hope you have board games or at least a deck of cards in there. Remember, you’re stuck here with me.”  
Dimitri laughed, just a one short breath laugh, but it was enough to make me feel warm. “I wouldn’t say I’m stuck here,” his tone was suggestive. I straightened up and stared at him, wide eyed. He just flirted. His face told me he hadn’t meant to say that aloud, and he turned beet red. He turned away from me, focused on removing items from boxes.  
“I’m going to watch some TV,” I walked into the living room and sat on the loveseat opposite the flat screen. Instead of turning on the TV I stared off into space, this whole staying single promise was going to be a hard one to keep. I asked myself my I was excited by the comment when I should be repulsed at the idea of moving on from Adrian so soon. I loved Adrian, I shouldn’t feel this content when he just broke up with me, but I couldn’t find it within me to even care that I wasn’t with him anymore.  
Not turning on the TV was a bad idea because my mind started to wander. I was amazed at my own ability to function after today. I became a damn princess, Dimitri is my guardian and roommate, Adrian broke up with me, Mason… Well I wish I remembered more about him. I should remember more since that all happened before I was kidnapped.  
Thinking about my time away from court was a blank canvas. If I was compelled to forget then I should still have little snippets. Memory erasure was nearly impossible to do perfectly, there was always a little detail the person retained. I recalled the voice in my head from last night, You’re not going to be the infamous Rosemarie Hathaway that plagues Strigoi when I’m done with you. A shiver ran down my spine. I pulled my knees to my chest and tried to build off of that small memory, to no avail. I don’t know how long I sat there, a rumble from my stomach snapped me out of my reverie.  
There was a knock on suite’s main door. I started to go to the door but Dimitri was suddenly in the room and shot me a look that said don’t you dare. Being the guarded and not the guardian was not something I liked. Dimitri looked through the small hole in the door with his hand reaching for his stake. He moved his hand away from the stake and opened the door. Lissa and Christian walked in, carrying a couple thousand grocery bags.  
I took as many bags as I could from Lissa and led them to the kitchen. Lissa and I started putting everything where it needed to go while Christian started making dinner for the four of us, bless him. Lissa handed me her iPod to put on some music, I chose Imagine Dragons, because they were the least depressing choice out of Lissa’s music.  
By the chorus of Tiptoe came by, Lissa and I were dancing around the island. We playfully overdramatized the song by throwing our arms to the sky and making outrageous facial expressions. Christian couldn’t help but join in. I was spinning around with my hands raised high, starting to feel positive for the first time since this morning. I stopped spinning and saw Dimitri smiling at me from the doorway. My breath caught. No. No. I will not go down that road.  
There was too much potential for a romantic moment here; all I had to do was grab his hand and lead him to the makeshift dance floor. I won’t. I tried to ignore the guilt of moving on from Adrian so fast, it should hurt more. I went to the iPod on the counter and browsed more of Lissa’s songs. Christian then went back to cooking since the water began to boil. Lissa pouted when she realized that her dance partners had left her, but she recovered quickly and started to set the table.  
“How can I help?” asked Dimitri’s voice from behind me. Christian nodded to the chicken breasts, “Do you know how to marinate chicken?” Of course he does, he can do anything. I sighed at Lissa’s small and almost pathetic music library. It didn’t look like there was anything useful for me to do in here.  
“I’m going to take a shower,” I announced. Only Christian responded, “Think of me when you’re in there.” When I was halfway through the living room I heard a smack and Christian cry out, “Hey! It was just a joke, babe.”  
I walked through my room, I took more paces than should be allowed for a bedroom. Seriously how big could this suite be? My bathroom must have been made with the help of angels. There was an oversized bathtub that was obviously built for two people at once. I didn’t want to think about what that could mean for me. The bathtub was surrounded by black and white swirled marble, the counter was set up the same way. There was a shower separate from the tub, it sat in the corner of the giant room, there were a frosted glass walls and a door. I chose the shower, still a little disturbed that I was given a suite with a tub built for a couple and not a teenager who couldn’t get her emotions sorted out.  
I wasn’t dirty like last night, but I did need the hot water to relax my muscles. I wondered if the others would be able to hear me if I started singing. I stood in the steaming water until there was a knock on the door, “Dinner’s ready!”  
Christian and Dimitri had made chicken parmigiana; I was being spoiled with my favorite meals. We talked about unimportant things, topics that wouldn’t induce stress. It was a nice distraction to laugh. We all laughed, except for Dimitri who would simply give us a small smile. We all sat together at one end of the table, ignoring the long expanse of empty seats. I didn’t need those extra chairs in my kitchen, because at this moment I was with all the family I would ever need.


	6. The Attack

The Attack  
Rose’s POV

The last three weeks of princess boot camp and taking bits of Lissa’s darkness had finally made me break. I woke up on the floor near the toilet in my lavish bathroom, Dimitri’s hand was on my forehead, “You have a fever.” There was a towel under my head, some cold medicine left out on the counter, a glass of water lay shattered on the floor. I don’t remember coming in here last night. An awful smell was coming from the toilet. “You should sleep some more, in your bed. Can you stand?” My brain was too sluggish to process Dimitri’s words, so I just stared at him like he had three heads. He sighed and all of the sudden the floor wasn’t beneath me anymore. The world faded to black.  
I woke up again in my plush bed. I still wasn’t used to the softness of the fabrics, but I never wanted to get used to it. I never wanted to take it for granted. There was a bottle of water and a granola bar on my nightstand, Dimitri must have put those there, I couldn’t help but smile to myself. I felt bad for him, I had been taking out all off my stress from princess training on him.  
I had been forgetting to have meals, which was completely unlike me, and Dimitri was always there to remind me to eat something. My response was always to snap at him or ignore him. I chewed on the granola bar and thought of ways to apologize without making it sound like I was swallowing my pride. I couldn’t think of anything.  
The digital clock in my room told me I had a couple hours before I needed to actually get up, but I couldn’t go back to sleep now. I felt sticky from sweat, my hair fell victim to my neck sweat. After a cool shower, I put on a green pencil skirt and white blouse. Lissa helped me buy clothes that were professional while still being cute. I put my hair in a tight bun, which would give me a headache later, and slipped on black ballet flats( it was going to be a while before I complied to wearing heels). I left my room to do some research on the computer in my office.  
Dimitri was sitting on the couch in the living room reading a western. “Good evening princess, feeling any better?” I groaned, “You know I hate it when you call me ‘princess’, right?” Just because it was true didn’t mean I wanted to hear it all the time. He grinned, tossing the book on the coffee table, “Yeah, I know. But I like it.” Dimitri has been driving me crazy for the last three weeks, he always says things when we’re alone that could be flirtatious comments, but I’m just not sure.  
I don’t know which one will give me gray hairs first, Dimitri’s semi-flirtatious comments or council meetings. Dimitri leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees, “Seriously, Rose, how are you? I found you an hour ago asleep on the bathroom floor and all of yesterday’s meals in the toilet.” I put on my best nonchalant face, “I’m okay. I’m just stressed, you know? Sorry for being such a bitch to you these past weeks, by the way.”  
Dimitri shook his head, “Don’t apologize. And you’re not okay. Stress does crazy things to a person’s physical health. Dhampirs don’t get sick, Rose,” Dimitri’s forehead was bunched up in concern. “You need to see a doctor today.” If there was one thing I wanted to change when becoming princess it was Dimitri’s patronizing attitude toward me. “Can’t. Don’t have time. There’s a council meeting today on the age decree, again, and then Tatiana wants to speak privately with me. Again.” This job, like guarding, was getting really damn redundant. The council meetings always had the same results: the same people would shout the same things and no one could ever agree and no laws would get changed.  
“So tell the queen she’s burning you out. You weren’t raised to do this. She’s making you take on too much at once.” Dimitri obviously didn’t understand the drive I felt to do a good job. I was going to make the dhampirs proud, I was going to put the conservative Moroi to shame. Things needed to change and I finally had a chance to do something about it. We could do more if Lissa was on the council, but the damn quorum law wouldn’t let that happen.  
He also didn’t know I was taking the darkness from Lissa, for which I was grateful. Only Adrian would be able to detect it, and he hasn't been around for obvious reasons.  
I shook my head, “You can’t force me. Don’t make me pull the princess card. I just need some DayQuil and Ibuprofen and I’ll make it through the day.” Dimitri gave me a hard look then picked up his book, ignoring me. Great, Rose, just go around pissing off those who’re trying to help. I went into my office and shut the door. Pushing my feelings aside, I got to business.  
Lissa would get her council seat. Other than instructional meetings on being princess, the queen and I have been following a lead on an illegitimate Dragomir child. Apparently Eric Dragomir had an affair, which I found unbelievable. He was like a father to me, I couldn’t see him doing that to Rhea. As much as I detested the idea, I was spending my time looking for the child. Lissa didn’t know yet, the queen thought it would only make matters worse if more people knew about it.  
I never thought I would see the day that the queen and I would embark on a super secret adventure together, I didn’t even like her that much. I was surprised to see the queen taking such an interest in Lissa’s role in politics but I wasn’t going to fight it. Tatiana told me she was trusting me with this information because she knew I wouldn’t do anything to hurt Lissa, I would protect this secret like it was Lissa’s own life. Tatiana wasn’t wrong, Dimitri didn’t even know, and he spent every second near me.  
Tatiana was at a loss on how to get information on this child, but I had an inkling of where to start. I had been communicating with Sydney Sage through email for a couple days now, asking about alchemist records and such. She wasn’t being very forthcoming. I put my face in my hands, I need Zmey. Abe would get Sydney to talk, the only problem was that I wasn’t sure I could trust him. A knock on the office door made me look up. Dimitri took in the agonized look on my face and raised an eyebrow. I tried to mimic his ability to hide all emotions, to wipe my face clean of everything.  
“Yeah?”  
“What’s wrong?”  
“Nothing.”  
“Liar.”  
“I can’t tell you yet, this is about my meetings with the queen, the one’s which she won’t let you in the room for.” Dimitri pursed his lips, “Well… what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” I laughed at his uncertain expression, “Woah, are you disobeying the queen? I never would have guessed, comrade. Isn’t that, like, treachery in your book?” The nickname comrade didn’t quite fit anymore, we weren’t fighting alongside each other like we should have been. Dimitri shrugged glibly, “You know you can tell me anything. Maybe I can help.” I sighed and waved him in, he sat in the only other chair in the room.  
“I honestly don’t think you’ll be able to help, but there’s no point in hiding it from you.” Dimitri still worshiped Lissa, it was adorable and annoying. I hate to admit that it made me jealous. He used to worship me. I took a deep breath and the words started to rush out of my mouth, “Eric, Lissa’s dad, is rumoured to have had an affair a couple years after Lissa was born. The woman he was with got pregnant and went into hiding. The queen and I are trying to find the Dragomir baby so Lissa can have her vote on the council.”  
I don’t know what kind of reaction I expected to get from Dimitri, but a simple “Okay,” was not it. He almost sounded bored by the news. He left my office at that point, softly closing the door behind him.

*****

Dimitri practically dragged me back to the suite, “You need to eat a real meal, not just stop at the coffee house for a donut. The queen can wait.” I was surprised by the vehemence in his voice. I complied since I was feeling a little faint. I sat at the breakfast bar complaining about the meeting and making wild gestures while Dimitri made me a sandwhich. I bit back a couple jokes about a man in the kitchen. “They don’t respect me! None of those old farts even consider my opinion even though I’m a dhampir. My opinion should matter most here!”  
Dimitri nodded along, “I know, I was in there with you,” he chuckled. “But it’s like you said, they’re all older and you’re barely an adult. And yes, sadly I think they just don’t care much about a dhampir’s opinion. I also think Rufus has something against you being a woman, too. He doesn’t seem to like any of the women on the council, including the queen.”  
Dimitri was right. The fact that he was here to validate my emotions made me calm down slightly. “It’s going to be okay, Lissa will do the right thing once she can vote.” Dimitri put a turkey sandwich in front of me. “Eat,” he demanded. “Yes, sir,” I mock saluted him. I munched on the sandwich while I thought of ways to get Sydney to give me the information I needed. Going to my father would be the last resort.  
I looked at the time on the stove, I almost couldn’t swallow the last of my lunch, “I’m going to be late! Come on, we can power walk and make it to the tea parlor in time.” I was late to meet with the queen once and she gave me a lecture on punctuality. I didn’t want to hear it again. We left the palace housing building and made our way through the empty courtyard.  
It was the middle of summer and everyone at court was inside to avoid the heat left over from the day before. It was only ten at night, the sun had barely set an hour ago. I wish the Moroi were more tolerant of the sun, I really missed seeing it and feeling it on my skin. I was walking at a brisk pace, not really paying attention to my surroundings. We were approaching the church when a figure stepped out from behind the northern church wall.  
Out of instinct Dimitri stepped in front of me, stopping us from moving. One of his hands reached behind him to keep a hold on my hip. I stepped sideways, I didn’t need a body shield and I didn’t want to think of how his touch made me feel. Dimitri looked sideways at me before focusing on the approaching silhouette. Once it moved under the lamppost I could see it was Clare Steed, a guardian who works with Eddie guarding Matthew Drozdov.  
“Hey Clare, are you alright? You look a little sick.” She kept walking our way, her steps resembled a robot. “I’m fine. I just… I… I’m sorry.” Her eyes were glossy, they weren’t really seeing what was in front of them. She looked like the people who Lissa compelled. There was a red stain on her shirt. She was right in front of Dimitri now. Dimitri was tense and confused by her presence and manner, but he wasn’t prepared for an attack from another guardian. Clare hesitated before taking a final step to Dimitri, closing the space between them.  
Clare’s stake was in her hands in a matter of seconds, there was already blood on the weapon as it sought out Dimitri. He jumped back in time to only receive a cut on his collarbone. Fear and anger swept through me making my guardian instincts kick in and put me into overdrive. The green skirt was tight on my thighs, making it hard to get a proper kick in. It didn’t help that Dimitri pushed me out of the way, knocking me on my ass.  
Clare pounced on Dimitri, he was too focused on positioning himself in front of me that she had the advantage. She managed to land a punch on Dimitri’s face, making him take a step backward for balance. Only I was still on the ground directly behind Dimitri and he tripped over me. Clare didn’t miss a beat and she jumped on top of him. She raised the stake. I threw myself at her with a warrior’s cry as the stake drove down.  
I heard the stake pierce skin and Dimitri cry out in agony, then go silent. Clare was underneath me now but I was too late, she killed Dimitri. I didn’t even look over to where he lay next to us. I felt my blind rage bubbling to the surface. I felt all of my love for Dimitri in that moment, regretting the chances I missed just because I had my head up my ass. She killed the man I love. I started hitting Clare, all of my pain and misery over losing Dimitri for the second time directed at her. Tears were blocking my vision which made it easier to attack Clare without thinking of her as a human being.  
She was fighting back, her fingers on my face were reaching for my eyes. I restrained myself from punching her even by getting my hands around her neck. Her hands fell from my face and she stopped squirming underneath me. She was alive, for now. I didn’t realize I was crying until the tears fell on my hands wrapped around Clare’s neck.  
I released my hold on her, crawling over to Dimitri. I started weeping with relief, he had a pulse. He’s not dead he’s not dead he’s not dead. He must have rolled over just in time for Clare to miss his heart. I could see his chest moving slightly. The stake was in his lower left abdomen, not lethal but he needed to get to a hospital immediately. I reached into the pocket of his duster and pulled out his cell phone. I didn’t have the guardian headquaters’ number memorized and I prayed Dimitri had it saved to his contacts. I saw a contact labeled GH and hoped that was the right one.  
No one answered. I called again, on the second ring there was a commotion from the courthouse, guardians swarmed out and started running toward us. Guardians from the palace housing building also came out at a full sprint. I dropped the phone and stood next to Dimitri, “I need help, bring a stretcher!” I shouted, a handful of guardians responded to my order and ran in the direction of the hospital. All of the others continued their run to me.  
Once they reached the north and south side of the church I could see that these men and women were the queen’s guardians. Something seriously wrong had to have happened for all of them to be coming from their separate posts. They took in the scene in front of them, determining who was the victim and who was the perpetrator. A couple guards approached Clare’s unconscious body, one grabbed her ankles and the other hooked his arms under her armpits.  
“What’s going on?” I demanded. I was a princess now, they couldn’t ignore me, “Where are you taking her?” As much as I hated Clare right now, I knew that she was under some sort of influence, she tried to fight it. She shouldn’t be punished… too much. The one who appeared to be the leader of the group, Daniel, nodded to the guards holding Clare, the guards started carrying her to the courthouse, where the prison cells were. “Princess Hathaway, we need to move you to a secure location. Guardian Belikov will be taken care of. I will escort you to the palace housing building and we’ll leave two guards with you. The court is under lockdown.”  
I didn’t want to go back to the palace housing building, I wanted to go to the hospital with Dimitri. I narrowed my eyes at Daniel, “Guardian Brown, tell me what is going on right now.” I put as much authority as I could into my voice, hoping he didn’t hear how much it was shaking. Some more guards were making their way to us with a stretcher and a nurse.  
“The queen is dead.”


	7. Finally Home

Dimitri's POV

 

When I opened my eyes at first I thought I was still asleep, that I had simply moved from a nightmare to a dream. Rose was lying asleep next to me, her face adorably squashed against her hand. I wanted so badly to brush the hair from her face, but we weren't alone, "She hasn't left your side, this was the only way we could convince her to get some rest. Sorry if it’s… uncomfortable."  
Lissa was smiling down at me, my guardian angel was here. Here happened to be a hospital room, there were tubes protruding from my body, machines beeping telling me that I was alive. Memories of Clare and the stake came back to me. In a rush of panic I looked at Rose, she was wearing a black lace dress, not a hospital gown.  
How is she?" I asked. Just because she wasn't in the hospital doesn't mean she's okay. "She's... Tired. She's been under a lot of stress, with you being in the hospital and the council is a big mess right now. I've been spending a lot of time with her but she keeps locking herself in her office." Lissa sighed as she gazed at her best friend's sleeping figure.  
"How long have I been asleep?" I kept my voice low so that I didn't wake Rose. I noticed that Lissa was also wearing a black dress. There was a guardian standing outside the room's open door. "Four days. We came straight from the funeral," Lissa cast her eyes to the ground, her voice was barely audible. I tried to sit up but Lissa pushed my shoulder down, "Don't. You might tear the stitches."  
"What funeral?" I ignored the comment on the stitches.   
"The queen. The queen is dead. Guardian Steed killed her." It took a while for the news to sink in. I would accuse Lissa of lying, but Lissa wouldn’t make a joke like that. Lissa's face was a mask of controlled emotions, I hated it when other people did that. I was the only one who was supposed to hide their emotions, now everyone seemed to be doing it. The general shock from the news was fading, a lot of people hated the queen. Clare went for Rose after she killed the queen. What would have happened if Rose was on time to the meeting with the queen? I didn’t want to think about that.  
There was a knock on the door before Tasha walked in with a balloon that said GET WELL SOON, "Thank god you're awake, it took you long enough." The playful smile on her face disappeared when she saw Rose curled up next to me. I hadn't noticed before that my arm was under the crook of her neck. Tasha raised an eyebrow, “You take your guardian duties very seriously, don’t you?”  
Lissa thought I’d be uncomfortable with Rose next to me, but it was Tasha’s comment and attitude that I couldn’t stand. Tasha knew about my past relationship with Rose, everyone close to us did. I told Tasha long ago that I didn't reciprocate her feelings, and she said she just wanted to be my friend. One of us was obviously lying.  
“Yes, Tasha. I do,” My voice was cold and cutting, Tasha’s shocked expression showed as much. I don’t know exactly what Rose and I were in terms of a couple, all I know is that these last weeks with her had been like some sort of dream. Despite her poor eating habits, Rose had gained some of the weight back and she didn’t have anymore cuts or bruises. She was doing the unthinkable by taking a position in court higher than most Moroi, everyday she reminded me of the woman I fell in love with, the woman I’m still in love with to be completely honest. I loved every minute I got to spend with her.  
I looked down at Rose, she had dark circles under her eyes. At least she was sleeping now. We must have been too loud because Rose stirred and her eyelids fluttered. “Dimtree,” Rose mumbled, her eyes were fully open now. She gave me a lazy smile, “Hey you.” I didn’t like that we had spectators, but I smiled back at her anyway, “Hey.”  
She let out a content sigh and closed her eyes. Less than a second later her eyes flew open, she was completely awake now. “Dimitri!” She threw herself at me, I grunted from the impact and wrapped my arms firmly around her. It felt like some of the pain was started to ease away with her in my arms. “You should be more careful with him, Rose. He’s got stitches,” Tasha scolded. I didn’t appreciate her comment, I was perfectly fine with Rose in my arms. Rose gave me a tight squeeze before pushing away from me and standing up. I wanted her to come back.  
“I forgot. Sorry,” she smiled at me, not seeming sorry at all.

********************************

Lissa told me that the court was under lockdown for twenty-four hours after the queen’s death, but Rose was under lockdown for three days after that. Hans knew that she was in danger without the queen’s protection. Many Moroi wanted her dead. Many of the council members would likely try to kick Rose off of the council now. The new monarch better like dhampirs.  
Two days after I woke up I was released from the hospital, but I wasn’t allowed to go back to guarding Rose. Hans had ordered Mikhail to be Rose’s temporary guardian. When I got back to the suite Mikhail was sitting on the four seater couch with his feet on the coffee table and the TV on, he turned his head to look at me. I could hear multiple voices from the kitchen. “Hey, Guardian Belikov! It’s good to see you on your feet again! To be honest though, I don’t want you to recover too fast because then I have to go back to my awful desk job,” Mikhail was laughing, it seems he’s forgotten all about the animosity between us.  
“Why didn’t you check the door?” I asked. I needed to know I could trust him to guard Rose. “You and Rose are the only two who have keys, everyone else would have to knock,” Mikhail shrugged. I glared at him, I was feeling faint and wanted to sit down but I also wanted to intimidate Mikhail. “The queen was just murdered less than a week ago and there was an attempt on Rose’s life. Do you really think a door will stop someone who wants her dead?”  
The color left Mikhail’s face. I felt smug and tried to not let that show on my face. Rose came into the room with flour all over her jeans and T-shirt. “Dimitri! You were supposed to text me when they released you. Come on, you too Mikhail. This is a sort of ‘I’m not under lockdown anymore and you’re out of the hospital’ party. Let’s eat,” she tugged on my arm and led me into the kitchen. Everyone was here: Rose’s parents, Lissa, Christian, Tasha, a guardian named Ethan, and most surprisingly, Adrian.  
Adrian had a glass in his hand with amber colored liquid in it. There was an open bottle of scotch on the counter. Nobody took the chair at the head of the table, everyone sat next to or across from someone. Rose sat down next to her mother, Adrian sat on the other side of her. I don’t think anyone else registered the slightly uncertain look that crossed her face. She hid her uncertainty with a smile and handed him the bowl of peas.  
There was cheers from the others, “Dimitri!” “Hey, good to have you back!” “Not so much of a God now, are you?” The last one was from Adrian. The room fell silent as people stared from Adrian to me and back to Adrian with their mouths open. “And what does that make you, Adrian?” Rose asked with a mocking smile on her lips. She was diffusing the tension in the room. Everyone was grateful for the out and started nervously laughing. My respect for Adrian was dwindling.  
I took the open seat next to Tasha, she squeezed my arm. “Dimka, I don’t think you’ve met my friend, Ethan,” she put extra emphasis on the word friend. I leaned over and shook his hand, “I have. Briefly before. It’s good to see you again.” I ignored the painful tug from my abdomen. Tasha had a smug smile on her face, “That’s great! You two will be such good friends.” Ethan gave Tasha a huge smile with puppy dog eyes.  
Throughout dinner everyone made small talk, everyone laughed, except for Adrian. He always kept his glass full, I could see Rose’s eyes following his moves with concern. It took me a while to piece together why he was so intoxicated, I had been careless enough not to recall that the queen was Adrian’s aunt. My guess was that he was here so Rose and the others could take care of him. The funeral was only two days ago.  
I suspected everyone was here to distract Rose from the fear that she would be stripped of her royal title and forced to go back to being a guardian. Nobody wanted that, Rose had finally been making baby steps with the council.  
After dinner everyone drifted to the living room to play Monopoly. Since there were too many of us we had to make teams. “I call Ethan!” Tasha shouted, she rested a hand on his arm. Christian was about to claim Lissa but Rose literally stepped in front of him, “Not today, buddy. You can date her but you cannot take away my gaming partner.” Zmey took Janine’s hand, “We’ll play together.” I’m pretty sure I saw Janine blush, but she turned her head away.  
Adrian and Mikhail teamed up. “Well I guess that leaves just us, my friend,” Christian said as he patted my shoulder. We took our seats. Rose sat down next to me on the four seater, with Lissa beside her. “Hey, how’re you feeling?” She bumped into my shoulder playfully. I liked this seating arrangement much better than the kitchen, “I’m okay.” I smiled at her, and she gave me a smile that warmed my heart.  
I had never played monopoly before, but Christian was patient enough with me. He explained why we chose to buy certain properties and why we weren’t going to buy others. Throughout the game we were losing more money than gaining, I thought it was because I was really bad at the game until Christian slammed his fist on the table.  
“You two are cheats! That’s why you wanted to be on each other’s team!” He pointed to Lissa and Rose, I could tell Christian was holding back from laughing. Lissa gave Christian a wicked grin and Rose curled over laughing, “Sorry, Christian. You just get really good at this game when you play on college campuses. We’ve won this game after several shots of fireball. No one stands a chance when we’re sober.” Rose and Lissa high-fived, still laughing.  
Christian was only mock angry, but the little show was entertaining all of us. “This is a game of luck, girls. There’s no secret strategy,” He pointed to the girls’ large stack of money as an accusation. “That’s what you think,” Lissa winked at him.  
Rose stood up, “I need more Pepsi, you guys want something from the kitchen?” Christian sat down in defeat, “Ugh. Just bring me a Pepsi, you cheating, lying, girlfriend stealing succubus.” Everyone was laughing now, even Adrian. Rose straightened her shoulders a mockery of sophisticated air, “That’s princess cheating, blah blah succubus to you.”  
Since Rose left the room the game was sort of on pause. Everyone started talking in groups. Tasha started laughing, really loudly, too loud for it to be genuine. “Oh, Ethan,” she sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. She was really annoying me now. Rose came back with the Pepsi’s, she leaned over me to hand Christian his. It was a test of my self control to not look down Rose’s shirt, I don’t think she was aware of the view she was giving off.  
Rose clapped and rubbed her hands together, “Okay, who’s ready to lose?”

********************

It was the middle of the day but I couldn’t sleep. I was already losing my mind from only one day of bedrest. I was sitting on my bed, re-reading one of my favorite books when my mind wandered to Rose. Her disappearance made me come to my senses, I loved her and I wanted her back. Over the time I’ve spent with her I kept dropping hints, giving weak attempts at flirting. She would always shut down or change the subject whenever I said these things, though. Maybe I lost her forever. She didn’t need me complicating her life when she had a duty to the dhampirs.  
Thinking about Rose must have summoned her because my door opened and Rose snuck into my bedroom. She wearing an oversized T-shirt and extremely small shorts. “Hey,” I said, not really sure what was going on. “Hey, I didn’t know you were awake.”  
I held up my book, “I couldn’t sleep.” Rose walked over to the bed, she lifted up the covers and crawled in next to me, “Neither could I. Adrian snores.” Adrian had had a little too much to drink and passed out on Rose’s bedroom floor. Part of me, actually all of me, was glad she wasn’t in there with him anymore.  
Rose lay on her side, looking up at me, “Is this okay?” Her voice was threaded with hope. I tossed the book onto the nightstand and lay down next to her. I took one her hands in one of my own and laced our fingers together, I had to be careful or I would overstep a boundary. “Of course, you can sleep here anytime you want to.”  
Rose’s breath caught, which nearly drove me crazy. I loved being the one to take her breath away, “Dimitri…” she sighed. “What does that even mean? You keep saying these things that have a double meaning and it’s driving me insane. You told me you didn’t love me anymore!” Rose took her hand away and sat up, running her fingers through her hair. The sunlight caught in her dark brown hair, making her look ethereal. She stared at the wall. “I still love you, I always have. You know that. So what the hell do you want? Tell me you love me, right now. If you don’t…” she shook her head, “then I’ll put us all in the past. Just know that if you do that then I’m gone forever and I’m moving on.”  
I sat up, resisting the temptation to pinch myself to make sure I was awake. She still loves me, after all I’ve done, after all this time. Rationally, we shouldn’t be together. I’m older than her, I’m her guardian. Rose made me an irrational man. I could never think straight when I was with her. The lines between right and wrong were blurred because of my wants and desires. Now she was giving me a chance to go back to the way things were. My choice was so painfully obvious.  
“Rose,” I breathed. My heart was beating too fast. She still wasn’t looking at me, her jaw was clenched. I brushed her cheek with my thumb, my hand stroked her face down to her chin. I forced her to look at me, “Rose I have always loved you. I was lying in the church, only because I thought I was protecting you from myself. Love doesn’t fade, mine hasn’t. I. Love. You.”  
Rose didn’t say anything, she just looked at me. A small smile played at the corner of her mouth. She reached up and caught my hair in her fingers, “I missed this, being able to touch you.”  
I leaned down to bring our lips together, our first kiss since I was transformed. Her lips were so soft, just like I’d remembered and dreamt about. The kiss was so sweet and delicate, a kiss that would haunt my dreams. I hadn’t realized how much I missed the taste of her lips, it was heaven. Rose whispered my name, I moaned into her mouth.  
The pressure of the kiss increased, she maneuvered so that she was straddling me without breaking the kiss. This angle made her lips more accessible, the kiss was becoming heated. Her hands her gripping my face. I tightened my hold around her hips and ran one hand through her hair. I barely noticed the pain from my abdomen, Rose’s lips were doing things to me that made getting stabbed all worth it. I would go through that pain a thousand more times if I got to kiss Rose every time.  
Being here with her I felt like all of my humanity had been restored, every trace of the monster I was vanished.  
I was finally home.


	8. Leaving

Rose’s POV

Dimitri leaned down to kiss me, I’m pretty sure my heart stopped beating right then and there. It was stupid of me to try and stay away from Dimitri when I felt so complete with him by my side. I wanted to stay in this room forever, I could easily forget about all of my duties and worries here. I felt like we were there for a little piece of forever, time faded away. There was a commotion from the living room, two voices were calling my name.   
Dimitri tried to sit up but I pushed him down, “Don’t tear your stitches!” I hissed. The voices were arguing, getting closer to the door. I rolled off of Dimitri and lay down next to him, I wasn’t going to hide, but this position was less incriminating than being on top of him. There was a knock on the door and Mikhail barged into the room, “Belikov have you seen… oh.” Adrian trampled in after him, his face dropped when he saw the scene in front of him.  
I didn’t regret in the slightest what Dimitri and I were doing, but it nearly killed me to see Adrian so low. “Found her,” he said bluntly. He walked away, Mikhail ran a hand through his hair and went back to his makeshift bed on the couch. I looked at Dimitri, “What time is it?” We’d been making out for a while, long enough for Adrian to wake up from his stupor. Dimitri ran the back of his hand down my cheek, “Almost six, why?”  
I jumped out of bed, my eyes must have doubled in size. “Holy shit it’s that late?” I looked out the window, there was barely any sunlight left. I needed to get online now. “I’ll be right back,” I excused myself and ran out of the room, leaving a very confused Dimitri behind me.  
Adrian was walking out the door as I entered the living room. I bit my lip as I made my way to my office, not the time to worry about him. I closed and locked the door behind me. I shook the mouse to make the computer screen come to life. There were four notifications for missed video calls. That was nearly half an hour ago. Shit. I clicked on Sydney’s name and hoped she would still be at her laptop.  
She was. Her face showed up on my screen, the resolution was poor but I could see the shape of her face, “We agreed to talk at 5:30. You know I have other things to do, right?” Sydney Sage, how I missed her curt attitude. “Hey, yeah I know. I’m sorry. Is everything ready?” I kept my voice low, being paranoid that Dimitri would hear through the walls.  
Sydney’s shoulders sagged, “Yes, Abe has arranged for you to leave in three days and meet me at a hotel in Kentucky. He’s at court, isn’t he? Just ask him.” My breath hitched, I only had three days before I left. “I can’t, we’re always surrounded by others. Nobody else can know about this. What’s in Kentucky?”  
Sydney rolled her eyes, “Of course, I’ve become the unwilling messenger of the damned. There was an account tied to Eric Dragomir, the account holds around the same amount of money that Eric mysteriously transferred. Probably not the mother but a third party involved with the secret. We’re going to see the account holder.” As it turns out, trusting Abe was one of the best decisions of my life.  
“Who’s the account holder?” I asked, I could tell Sydney wanted to end this video call already. “Aren’t you scared someone will overhear?” Sydney snapped, “Abe said he would debrief you on the need to know details, good-bye Rose.” Her face disappeared before I could say anything else.  
Before I could slump onto my desk and pout I checked the time difference between Virginia and Russia. I had one more call to make.  
***********************  
The sun was about to rise. My stomach knotted at the thought of leaving court, especially without telling Dimitri and Lissa where I was going. I only had two days now. The elections would start soon, and I needed to be back before the new king or queen was chosen. Dimitri had one arm wrapped around me, rubbing up down my arm, “Rose?”  
I blinked twice, my head slowly coming back down to earth. “I don’t care. Something funny.” Dimitri turned back to the TV to chose a movie on Netflix. Mikhail sat in the lazyboy with his feet propped on the coffee table.  
I had a lot of free time on my hands now. Since the queen died the council hasn’t been meeting. There was one meeting to discuss Clare. I did my best to advocate for her- she shouldn’t be executed for what she did under compulsion. Of course, the council didn’t listen to me.  
“I’ll make popcorn,” I left Dimitri’s embrace and beelined for the kitchen. Two days. I had just gotten Dimitri back and now I had to leave him. I clenched the counter to stop me swaying. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I had to betray Dimitri’s trust. I was the princess, I had to protect the dhampirs, and getting Lissa on the council would protect the dhampirs. Hell, making Lissa queen would be ideal.  
If everything went according to plan, I would only be gone for two or three days. Go to the account holder’s house, get the location of the Dragomir child, get the child and return to court. Simple. I couldn’t bare to think of Lissa’s reaction to this secret sibling, she worshiped her father like a saint.  
I made the popcorn and returned to Dimitri’s arms. I couldn’t focus on the movie, only on Dimitri’s arms around me and the sinking fear of what I had to do.  
Abe came over near the end of the movie, I wriggled out of Dimitri’s embrace before my father saw. I took him into my office and closed the door. “Okay old man, are you going to tell me who this account holder is?”  
“Sonya Karp” he inspected his nails.  
“You’re kidding, right?”  
“No.”  
“She’s a Strigoi.”  
“I know.”  
I raised my eyebrows, “Explain.” Abe sat down and motioned for me to do the same. Abe waited for me to take a seat before jumping in, “I’ve contacted a spirit user who lives on the fringes of society. You are in charge of subduing Ms. Karp with the help of Mikhail and the guardian I’m sending with you. The spirit user will then transform her, like Vasilisa did for Guardian Belikov. He will meet you in Kentucky along with his brother, who I believe you know quite well.” Abe gave me a knowing look. Zmey really outdid himself this time.  
“You mean to tell me that you reached out to Victor Dashkov and Robert Doru? And they agreed to help, just like that?” Disbelief stained my voice. My father smiled at me like I was a small child who didn’t understand basic math, “You doubt my power. I may have given them a good reason to help you.” I didn’t want to know.  
Abe handed me a manilla envelope, “Credit card, directions to the hotel, the iPod you requested, a non traceable phone with my number. I expect updates.” He wasn’t showing a lot of concern, but the updates comment made me realize that Abe was scared for me. He had done a lot for me without asking questions. In just the short time he’d known me he had put a lot of faith in me, trusting me more than I could trust him.  
“Thank you, dad.” Abe, who was looking around the office, flicked his eyes to me. His eyebrows raised, “Of course.” I stood and walked over to the door, Abe followed. Before I opened the door I hugged him. He stood there frozen for a moment before wrapping his arms around me. When he turned to leave I could swear I heard him mumble “proud of you.”  
Dimitri’s bedroom door was closed, Mikhail stood at my entrance, “Well? What did Mr Mazur have to say?” The expectant look on Mikhail’s face transformed to wonder and then tears spilled out of his eyes as I told him we were going to save his lover.  
**************************  
Dimitri threw his book on the nightstand just like last night. “It’s a special day in a woman’s life when a man puts a book down for her,” I joked and crawled into his bed. Dimitri grinned, “This is better than anything in those books anyway.” He tried to lean over to kiss me but grimaced in pain. His hand applied pressure to his abdomen.  
“Why didn’t Lissa heal me? Not that I expected her to, but...” he stated curiously. I chewed my lip, because I couldn’t have you peering over my shoulder every second as I finished up my plans to leave court, because you would try to stop me. Because I specifically requested Mikhail to be my temporary guardian so that he could help me. I hated lying to Dimitri, but it was necessary. “By the time we were allowed to see you, you were already in a stable condition. Lissa wanted to heal you but I wouldn’t let her. I didn’t want her using that much magic when I knew you’d heal perfectly fine.” Dimitri studied me for a long time, I felt small under his gaze. I looked down at my hands, “I don’t think I could handle taking the darkness from her,” I whispered.  
Dimitri bought the lie and wrapped me in his arms, flinching as his did so. I realized how low I was being by making him feel sympathy toward me. He kissed the top of my head, “Roza, I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”  
“I know. Trust me I would have let her heal you if you were in worse condition, but I don’t think we should be abusing her power. We need to save it for when it’s really needed. You pulled through okay.”  
Dimitri laughed, “You took a raincheck on the witch doctor?”  
I grinned, “Yeah, something like that.”  
I pulled his face down to my own and kissed him. “Roza,” he breathed. I closed my eyes, enjoying the way my name sounded when he said it. The kiss intensified, soon enough our clothes would be coming off. Dimitri’s hand pulled at the hem of my shirt but I pulled away, “I… I don’t think we should… Dim-”  
“It’s okay, Roza. Don’t let me do anything you don’t want me to. We can just… talk,” he shrugged nonchalantly but I could tell he was hurt by the rejection. I couldn’t sleep with Dimitri, yet. If I did now I don’t think I would be able to leave court, leave Dimitri. “Okay, yeah. What should we talk about?” I focused on his chocolate eyes, the pain and confusion in them.  
He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “I get that you don’t want Lissa using her powers because of the madness, but why didn’t you have her, or even Adrian, go into your mind and retrieve your memories? If it was compulsion that made you lose the memories of your time away, spirit should help you get them back.”  
I smiled sadly, “I considered doing that, but I’m not so sure I want to remember what happened to me. All I remember is a voice, and that was bad enough. I don’t need the memories back.”  
Dimitri didn’t comfort me, instead he gave me a solemn look, “I think you’re a timebomb.” It was times like this that I wished I could do the raise-one-eyebrow thing. “Excuse me?” I asked incredulously. Dimitri laughed without humor, “Do you really think the Strigoi would erase your memories of, what? Torture? No, they would want you to live with those memories, it’s a game they play. They also wouldn't return you to court without ulterior motives. I think whatever you can’t remember is going to be triggered by something and you’re going to lose control, and it’s going to be messy.”  
The scariest part was that he made a lot of sense, a shiver ran down my spine. The Strigoi didn’t return me, they planted me. I was a timebomb and I had no idea what tragedy would lay in my wake.  
With everything that was plaguing my mind I shouldn’t have been able to sleep. Dimitri’s arms provided warmth and stability and protection. I checked in on Lissa through the bond, her calm emotions helped me calm down enough to drift off in Dimitri’s embrace.  
***************  
The day to leave came. Mikhail and I would meet the mystery tagalong guard at the garage in twelve hours. I had a backpack full of clothes and toiletries hidden under my bed along with Mikhail’s things. I set up a surprise for Dimitri and Lissa that would hopefully distract them for hours after I’m gone.  
The day started with Dimitri making me breakfast, seeing him shirtless and flipping pancakes made me all sorts of crazy. We lounged around the suite until lunch time. Dimitri and I left the suite with Mikhail to go on a double date with Lissa and Christian.  
Dimitri was shocked and became shy when I told him that Lissa knew about us. Lissa then told Christian who told Tasha and the news spread like wildfire. For those who didn’t know us well, this was the first time hearing of a relationship between us two and it became hot gossip.  
Lissa made reservations at a small, hidden away restaurant for royals. Mikhail stood off to the side like a guardian typically would, but he would catch my eye every now and then. He wanted to leave now, I wanted to spend every last moment possible with Dimitri, Lissa and yes, even Christian. I held Dimitri’s hand throughout the dinner, the few others in the restaurant couldn’t look away. I leaned over to kiss him, he flushed slightly at the gazes from all the Moroi.  
Half an hour before Mikhail and I had to leave, we all made our way to one of the large party rooms in the royal housing building. Before I opened the doors, I turned to face Dimitri, “So I did some information digging. Your birthday is less than a month away,” I shook my finger at him for not telling me. “Given everything that’s happened recently, we need something… happy. We’re celebrating your birthday tonight!”  
I threw the door open to reveal our friends, my parents, and Dimitri’s family from Russia. Dimitri couldn’t move at first, but his sisters had no issue and all ran to him as one. “Dimka!” His mother joined the crowd, hugging Dimitri and showering him with kisses. Yeva hobbled over to me, “You did it. I knew you would bring our Dimitri back to us. Tell me, child, why are you leaving?”  
I looked over my shoulder to make sure no one heard her, “Don’t say anything about that. I know what I’m doing. I’m coming back.” Her visions always annoyed me. Yeva smirked and hobbled over to Dimitri, his height made him crouch down to hug her.  
I took Lissa over to Mark and Oksana, I arranged for them to come with the Belikovs. Lissa started a starry eyed conversation with the couple. I looked over to Dimitri, greeting Paul like a stranger he couldn’t wait to meet. Dimitri had never smiled so much in front of others, my heart melted.  
I found Mikhail standing by the door. No one noticed as we slipped out. It took us only minutes to retrieve our things and jog to the parking garage. The sun would rise in an hour and the court was asleep for the day. Standing by a shiny SUV was non other than Eddie.  
Eddie grinned, “Another mission, huh?” I shook my head, “You can’t come with us. You have a charge, remember?” Now Eddie shook his head, “Lord Drozdov has been detained for questioning per order of the council so I can’t guard him. Mr Mazur asked me to come with you and I agreed, of course.”  
I felt like I had been slapped, “What? When did the council decide this?” Eddie was taken aback, clearly he didn’t know the council decided this without me. “Yesterday. Since you kept saying Clare was compelled, they took in the closest Moroi to her.”  
Mikhail put a hand on my shoulder, “We have to leave, someone is going to wonder where we are.” I bit back anything else I might have said and crawled into the trunk of the SUV. The guards would never let me leave the court walls without an entourage. Mikhail and Eddie got in front, this was eerily similar to the escape we pulled at the beginning of summer.  
Eddie and Mikhail made a lame excuse for leaving, errands or something. The guard at the gates let them through. Once the car zipped past the invisible line of the wards my head nearly exploded.  
All I could see was fangs and white skin. The same voice that threatened me in my bathroom came back, but he was saying more things, different things. My muscles were tired from fighting and my clothes were torn and bloody. The voice had eyes with red rings. His eyes weren’t happy with me, but his voice was calm and seductive. I couldn’t look away.  
All of my lost memories came crashing down on me.


	9. The Memories

Eddie’s POV

Mikhail pulled over two miles from court to let Rose out of the trunk. I hopped out and opened the trunk door. Rose jumped out at me, knocking me over. “What the hell?” I shouted, Rose didn’t miss a beat and kicked me in the stomach. I reached for her shoulder but she took my arm and twisted it. Mikhail was beside me now, “Rose, it’s us!” Rose gave a cry as she lunged for Mikhail. He fell over, Rose was immediately on top of him. She reached for his stake.  
I instinctively pushed Rose off of Mikhail, she scrambled back up and started fighting again. Neither Mikhail or I could get through to her, her eyes held no recognition for us. Rose looked between the two men before her... and darted the other way. Mikhail tried to chase her but she was too fast for him. “Rose! ROSE!” She stumbled over a rock, regaining her balance quickly.  
Not quick enough. Mikhail tackled her to the ground. I ran over to them and helped Mikhail drag Rose back to the car. She stopped resisting when we got close to the car and I loosened my grip.  
Big mistake.  
Rose broke free.  
Rose managed to slam my head on the car, my vision became blurry. Mikhail took the blunt end of his stake and hit Rose over the head, she toppled to the ground. Mikhail was breathing heavy, “Panic attack?” he suggested with a shrug.  
We picked up Rose and laid her down in the backseat. “Should we buckle her up?” I asked. Mikhail snorted and got back in the driver’s seat, “C’mon. We have to meet the alchemist at the hotel by two o’clock. We’ll have just enough time to stop and eat at McDonald’s on the way.” I sighed and closed the door on Rose. Weird shit has been happening lately.  
The sun was just beginning to rise over the mountains. Mikhail turned the radio to a classical rock station and suggested that I get some sleep so that I could drive later. I leaned over my seat to look at Rose’s unconscious body. Instead of resting like I should have I pondered the reasons why Rose would attack us and try to get away from us. I thought she knew she could trust me.  
*********************

Three hours later Rose woke up and started thrashing wildly. Mikhail had to pull over the car or she’d cause him to crash. Rose tried to get out of the car but Mikhail locked the doors and put the child lock on. Rose then resorted to kicking at us, luckily she missed since we had the seats to duck behind. “Do we wait it out? She’ll get tired soon.” I asked.  
Rose roared, “Fight me! Fight me or kill me already!” Mikhail looked at me with shock, “I don’t think we can wait this out.” He reached for his stake again. I shook my head, “Don’t. You’ll hurt her.” I did my best to crawl in the backseat with Rose giving me all of her might. I pushed through her punches and kicks, which were awkward in the enclosed space. She couldn’t do much harm here. I positioned myself so that I could reach Rose’s throat. She swatted at my arms but fear overtook her when she saw where my goal was. She stopped thrashing out.  
My hands froze right before touching her neck. “Are you going to fight me?” I asked. Rose gulped, she shook her head. She looked so afraid of me, I couldn’t get my mind wrapped around it. I dropped my hands, “Okay. Goo- ooph!” Once my hands weren’t near her throat she kneed me in the place that really counts.  
I keeled over onto Rose, who tried to wriggle her way out from under me. Mikhail shouted from the front seat, “Just subdue her already!” My hands reached up to Rose’s neck, this time I didn’t pause when she came to a standstill. I wrapped my hands around her neck and kept her in a chokehold until she closed her eyes and her shoulders slumped.  
I crawled back to my seat, “Maybe we should turn around.” Mikhail shot me a dark look, “Rose will be fine. We’re doing this.” I looked sideways at him, suddenly wary of this mission. Rose didn’t seem right, and I couldn’t just ignore that.  
*************************

Rose didn’t wake up before we got to the hotel. This proved to be a different kind of problem, “How are we going to get her inside?” I asked. We couldn’t just carry her limp body through the lobby. Mikhail threw his head back in exasperation, “I don’t know! Just carry her bridal style, the humans will think she passed out from the long drive.”  
That’s exactly what we did. As it turns out, it’s not that hard to carry a limp body around humans, I even got some looks of awe from the women. Mikhail checked us in and led us to the large suite. The room Mr Mazur rented for us had three bedrooms and a main living room, all connected. Sydney Sage, the alchemist, was already in the suite.  
She fit Rose’s description perfectly: average height, dark blonde hair, stiff. Her eyes widened when she saw Rose, “What happened? Were you attacked?” Her voice held concern for Rose, I didn’t realize the two cared for each other. I put Rose down on the couch. “Something like that.” Mikhail mumbled.  
Sydney pressed her lips together. She glanced over us, “You must be Edison Castile,” she held out her hand. I shook her hand, though I felt uneasy about her knowing my full name. She turned to Mikhail, “And you’re Mikhail Tanner.” I noticed how she didn’t say Pleased to meet you or anything along those lines. “Well if I’m Mikhail and he’s Edison that must make you Victor, Robert or Sydney.” Mikhail’s voice reeked of bitterness.  
He took his bags and went into one of the bedrooms, closing the door forcefully behind him. “I apologize for Mikhail, this mission is somewhat personal for him and it hasn’t been pleasant so far.” Sydney didn’t look offended but I felt the need to make amends anyway.  
“What happened to Rose? Mr Mazur told me I would only need to speak with her, not the rest of you.” Sydney’s tone stayed polite despite the message she was sending. Rose had told me about Sydney’s disdain for the ‘unnatural creatures of the night’.  
“She, uh-” The suite’s electronic door beeped and the red light flashed green. In walked the Dashkov brothers. The two looked like they were on vacation. They wore capri shorts and golf shirts while lugging in their suitcases. “Ah, it seems young Rosemarie is still adjusting to the daylight schedule,” Victor eyed Sydney, “Mazur sent an alchemist? He has his hands in more places than I thought.” Robert couldn’t keep his eyes off Rose, I stepped in his line of vision to stop his creepy glare.  
Victor saw this, “Not to worry young Edison, my brother will not harm Rose.”  
I clenched my jaw but didn’t move, “Good to know.”  
Rose stirred, she started mumbling what I thought was Dimitri’s name, but it was morphed. She blinked a couple times before sitting up. “Mikhail! She’s up,” I shouted and prepared for another attack.  
Rose looked around the room, her eyes widening with fear and anger, she kicked into battle mode and leapt off the couch and onto the coffee table. Sydney immediately took a few steps back, holding up her hands. Rose took me as the most immediate threat, she jumped off the table and charged me. I was ready for her attack, but Rose had always beat me in training sessions. Fighting her alone was almost pointless. She saw my hands reach to restrain her wrists and responded with a quick kick to my gut.  
Mikhail came storming out of the bedroom, his stake at the ready. “Rose! We are not going to hurt you! Jesus, look at us!” Rose did look at him, she had the same glint in her eyes that she did when she was fighting Strigoi. She bared her teeth, “Why are you keeping me here? Let me go or just kill me!” Rose charged Mikhail, Mikhail used his larger body to fall into her and knock her backwards.  
Sydney was yelling now, demanding to know what was going on and begging Mikhail for God’s sake to please put the stake away. Robert spoke for the first time, “Restrain her, let me calm her down.”  
Mikhail and I exchanged a glance, it was the only thing we haven’t tried: compulsion. Mikhail and I ran forward at the same time. The room was big but not big enough for Rose to escape us and we had her cornered. Mikhail reached down and took Rose’s ankles out from under her. Once she was on the floor I used my knees to pin her arms down. She squirmed but couldn’t get free.  
Robert walked over to Rose with purpose. He knelt down to look her in the eye, “Rosemarie, look at me.” His voice was calm and almost seductive in a way. Rose knew the game, she sealed her eyes shut so hard that her whole face wrinkled. Robert’s gaze was unwavering, “Rosemarie, I said look at me.” The power in his voice made Rose crack, she made eye contact.  
Her whole body seemed to sag under his gaze, she was like a doll now. “Why are you fighting your friends?” he asked slowly as if speaking to a child. Rose shook her head just as slowly, it was like the two were suspended in jello. “They’re not my friends. Enemies. Enemies. They said so.”  
My head snapped up to Mikhail, he looked confused but I knew exactly what was happening now. I had seen too many mind games played. Rose was under compulsion to fight us. Robert didn’t lose his focus, “Who said that?” Rose tried to move one of her arms, “Randall and Vladimir.”  
“I heard you were kidnapped, did they kidnap you?”  
“No, I was delivered to them by someone else. Randall and Vladimir just kept me with them for two weeks until I was taken by the humans and left at the court gates.”  
“And they told you to attack your friends?”  
“My enemies. They said they are my enemies! The Strigoi are my friends, they want to give me power and strength. But I have to destroy my enemies first.”  
Something in Robert changed and he gripped Rose’s face, “Careful,” I hissed. He ignored me, “The Strigoi are not your friends. They are life takers. The dhampirs and Moroi are your friends, you know that deep down. Think real hard, Rosemarie, you can break through this compulsion that Randall and Vladimir put on you.” He stared intently into Rose’s eyes and after a few moments Rose started hyperventilating.  
Then the screams started. She looked terrified but she kept her gaze on Robert. “What are you doing?” I screamed, Mikhail let Rose’s ankles go and simply stared in fear. Robert stayed calm, though there was a slightly disturbed look on his face, “Rosemarie you need to stay quiet, others will hear you.” Rose’s chest started convulsing and she was racked with sobs.  
“Get away from her!” I roared, Robert flinched.  
Robert started saying things to calm Rose down, the compulsion couldn’t get her heart to slow down though. Robert gave up trying, “Go to sleep,” he commanded.  
Rose’s eyes closed and her head slumped to the side. Victor grabbed one of Robert’s shoulders and led him to the couch, Mikhail scooped Rose up and carried her into the bedroom. He only came back into the living room to go to his own room and close the door. Sydney was pressed up against a wall, her eye darting between me and the brothers. Her phone rang.  
Sydney was on the phone, “Mr Mazur, hello. She’s asleep right now, but perfectly fine. I know, Mr Mazur, I’ll have her call you as soon as she wakes up. I promise that she’s perfectly fine, she’s just really tired. She probably forgot to call you.” She tapped the end call button forcefully and sat down on the couch. “I hate lying to him. This is just great. We were supposed to be at the house of the account holder within the hour. This was all supposed to be so simple.”  
I wanted to comfort her but I don’t think she would appreciate being touched by an evil creature of the night. The room was quiet for a long while. Rose must have woken up because I heard sobbing. Sydney picked her head up to look at me, “I heard that Rose went AWOL for a couple weeks. She was really kidnapped?” I nodded.  
Victor joined the conversation, “She chose an interesting time to regain her memories.”  
“What was that earlier? Robert made Rose pretty damn scared.” I growled, Victor wasn’t fazed. He chuckled, “Robert helped Rosemarie uncover her lost memories. Compulsion got rid of her memories and compulsion got them back. We heard all about Rosemarie’s disappearance: the note left for the queen, the letter left by Rosemarie and her condition upon return. We aren’t as secluded as people think.”  
Sydney seemed to dislike Victor more than she disliked me, she must be a person of taste. Neither of us responded to Victor but that didn’t stop him from talking more, “And now she’s run away to find Vasilisa’s illegitimate sibling. Interesting.” He brought the cup to his lips to hide a smile.  
“Speaking of illegitimate siblings, thank you, Robert, for helping me. That was kind of you.” Rose stood in the doorway of her bedroom. Her hair was disheveled. She had large puffy circle under her eyes. I wondered what kind of nightmare she had to remember.  
“Rosemarie Hathaway, thanking someone for compelling her? I never thought I’d see the day,” Victor smirked. I thought his joke was extremely rude. I clenched my fist. Rose lifted her chin, “I’m Princess Rosemarie Mazur Hathaway now, but you may address me as Princess Hathaway.” I couldn’t help the small smile on my face at seeing Rose stand up to one of her biggest enemies, and with class.  
Victor simply nodded his head, “Princess Hathaway it is then. Forgive me if I do not bow, my knees aren’t what they used to be.” Rose spared him a sharp look before directing her attention to Sydney. Her face softened, “Hey there. How’s my favorite alchemist?”  
Sydney seemed to relax a little with Rose in the room, “You have to call Abe.” Rose’s smile grew but I couldn’t see why. Sydney wasn’t very warm or affectionate to Rose. Maybe Rose took Sydney’s willingness to even talk to her as affection. “I’ll get right on that. Eddie?” She looked at me hopefully, “Yes, Princess?”  
Rose narrowed her eyes, she didn’t like it when her friends addressed her by her official title. I guess it was only okay to use it as a power dominance thing with people you didn’t like. Victor, for example. “I’m sorry, for earlier.”  
Victor piped in, “You were compelled. From the looks of it your memories and orders from Vladimir and Randall were triggered by crossing the ward’s boundaries.” Rose flinched at the name “Randall” but kept her face devoid of emotion. “Do you always have to talk?” she snapped.  
“It’s okay Rose. I don’t blame you,” I said honestly. Rose gave me a small smile of relief before retreating to her bedroom. Sydney followed her.  
**********************************

The house was blue, it sat near a small lake in a town called Paris. The house looked pretty for a Strigoi. The sun was going to set in nearly an hour, if we didn’t move now we would have to wait until tomorrow for the advantage we have with sunlight. I still hadn’t gotten any sleep since the previous night, but I didn’t feel any fatigue yet. All six of us were crammed into the SUV, Sydney sat in the trunk like Rose had earlier.  
Rose turned around to face me and the brothers, her business face masked the fatigue and general grief of her returned memories. “Here’s how it’s going to go down, Mikhail and I will walk the perimeter of the house and look for the easiest entrance. We’ll come back for you, Eddie. The three of us will go inside and pin Sonya on the floor, I’ve done it before in Russia with a group of dhampirs less skilled than any of us. Once Sonya is down, Robert you’ll have to stake her. Did you charm the stake I gave you?”  
Robert nodded. Rose nodded in return. I looked at Mikhail, curious to how he was handling this. He looked scared and excited at the same time, hopefully he could fight Sonya without hesitating. This was the moment Mikhail had been waiting for.  
Rose unbuckled her seat belt, “All right, let’s go.”


	10. A Father's Duty

Abe’s POV

Three pairs of eyes stared me down. I did my best to look surprised at the news of Rose’s disappearance. I was slightly offended on Rose’s behalf that her closest friends didn’t notice that she was gone earlier, she left almost seven hours ago. “What do you mean, she’s gone?” I demanded. Vasilisa’s eyes pleaded with me, “She left us letters telling us she’s doing something important and she’ll be back soon. There’s one for you too.” She handed me an envelope. Christian kept an arm around her for comfort.  
I opened it in front of the children wondering why Rose even bothered to write me a letter:  
Old man, is now a bad time to tell you that Dimitri and I are together? Don’t threaten him like you did Adrian!  
It took a decent amount of my self control to not pierce Guardian Belikov with my eyes. After a moment of thought, I did it anyway. “Interesting. Guardian Belikov, do you care to tell me why my daughter is concerned that I’ll ‘threaten’ you like Ivashkov?” I already knew that they had started dating, my word, my daughter really has no faith in me. I know everything.  
Belikov didn’t bat an eye, in fact he was scrutinizing me, but it was Vasilisa who spoke up, “Are you kidding me? Rose ran away! Not even that, she could have been kidnapped again! Don’t you care about that?” I directed my gaze to the blonde girl, “As you said, Rose has every intention of coming back. I believe my daughter capable of taking care of herself.” Vasilisa threw her arms in the air. A new voice joined the group, “Is that why you felt the need to stalk her in Russia?” The Belikov sisters appeared from down the hallway and joined their brother along with Rose’s friends.  
“I was merely keeping an eye on her. That was before I knew how self reliant she is.” I didn’t like the growing crowd outside my suite’s door. Viktoria gave me a dirty look and scoffed. Dimitri took a step forward to look down at me, I hated being several inches shorter than him. “I don’t believe you. Considering Rose’s last disappearance, you should more concerned than ever.”  
Vasilisa touched his arm, “What are you saying, Dimitri?” Dimitri and I locked gazes as he answered the princess, “I think Rose really did run away, and Zmey helped her.”  
It was the first time anyone had called me Zmey to my face. I knew what everyone said about me, but no one ever had the courage to chance pissing me off. Instead of being angry, I found myself admiring the boy’s audacity. He reminded me of Rose in that sense.  
I feigned a stern and cold look, “Don’t go around accusing people about something you know nothing of, boy. By the way, I plan on having a nice talk with you later, about how I expect my daughter to be treated.” I saw Dimitri swallow before I stepped back into my room and closed the door on the six people concerned for my daughter’s well being.  
It was almost two in the afternoon, Rose should be arriving at the hotel any minute now. I stayed up all throughout the human day to get Rose’s call, I couldn’t help the feeling of impatientness coursing through me. I picked up my phone and dialed, Sydney Sage answered on the second ring, “Mr Mazur, hello.” There was an edge to her voice.  
“Sage, where’s Rose?” I hissed. Sydney assured me that Rose was “perfectly fine” and she was currently asleep. I didn’t believe her. After thirty minutes of pacing my private, untraceable phone rang- Rose’s name popped up on the screen.  
“You are to keep me updated!” I growled. I have never used so much emotion in my voice when speaking to Rose, if she was surprised she didn’t show it. “Dad, I’m sorry. I just… Something happened and I forgot. I’m okay,” Her voice trailed off toward the end. She didn’t sound okay.  
*********************************  
The news of Rose’s disappearance shook the court to the bone. Even the Moroi who didn’t like her knew the implications of her death by a Strigoi’s hand. No one thought that she was safe outside the court walls. Everyone in the packed ballroom was turning to each other and whispering their own theories about Rose’s absence.  
Janine pinched the bridge of her nose, “Can I talk to her next time you get her on the phone?” she sighed. I decided, against Rose’s orders, to tell Janine where Rose was and what she was doing. I wasn’t going to make Janine worry, I hated seeing that pained look on her face, “Rose would kill me if she knew I told you, so make it worthwhile.” Janine was taking it quite well, in my opinion.  
Nathan Ivashkov took the stage, bringing a stupid looking scroll with him. He started the nominations ceremony by stating the rules which everyone already knew and were completely bored with. My favorite part was when he said another Ivashkov couldn’t run during this election. About damn time.  
I watched the chaos in front of us with shrewd eyes. Rufus Tarus was nominated for king. Like I said, chaos. This was the second election I had witnessed in my lifetime. Janine stood near me in the back of the ballroom as more and more royals declared they would run for throne. Nathan Ivashkov started rolling up his ridiculous scroll and declared the session complete.  
Natasha Ozera stood up, “I nominate Princess Vasilisa Dragomir.” The room gasped as a whole, whispers broke out through the room. Before Nathan could say anything Christian was on his feet, “I second the nomination.” Then the little worm that dumped Rose and then proceeded to follow her with puppy dog eyes shot up from his seat. “I confirm the nomination.”  
Nathan was making large gestures and waving his arm wildly, making stupid complaints, “You’re not from her family! She doesn’t make quorum!” Natasha glared at Nathan, “We don’t have to be from her family. And she doesn’t need a quorum to be a candidate, she only needs it to actually be queen.” Nathan started to protest further but Vasilisa slowly stood, keeping her eyes straight ahead and her head tipped high, “I accept the nomination.”  
The whispers amplified in volume, some were shouting. Nathan, who had become red in the face, dismissed everyone and stormed off the stage. I grabbed Janine’s hand and led her through the crowd, I smugly noticed how people moved out of my way. We made it out of the ballroom, I started scanning the area for Vasilisa. I spotted her and her friends making their way to the royal housing building.  
I had longer legs but Janine easily met my stride. We caught up with Vasilisa’s group before they even made it passed the church. I walked right up to the princess, “That was interesting. Do you plan on making a fool of yourself by going through the trials just to be knocked out in the end by the quorum?” I glanced at Christian, “Or do you plan on having some kids right away?”  
Vasilisa scoffed, “I don’t know why I accepted. It was Rose’s idea.” I almost stopped in my tracks. “You’ve had contact with Rose?” Rose was only supposed to be in contact with me. Vasilisa looked sideways at me, “No. In the letter she left me she said that she needed me to do something.” She turned her head and glared at Natasha, Christian and Adrian, “She just didn’t tell me what it was.”  
Christian shrugged, “Rose told us to do it, don’t you trust her? She’ll have a good reason.” I stroked my beard, I would have to talk to Rose about this when she checked in next. I didn’t appreciate being left out of any plans, especially if they were interesting and controversial plans.  
Vasilisa shook her head, she pivoted on her foot to face the group, stopping us all in our tracks, “Do any of you realize what you’ve gotten me into? And why didn’t anyone bother to tell me about it?” I had never seen the princess so frustrated, she was always the picture of sereness.  
“You would have tried to talk us out of it. If we surprised you, then you’d have no choice but to say yes. Hey, don’t look at me like that. Blame all of this on Rose.” Christian held his hands up in a defensive gesture.  
To my surprise, Janine spoke up, “We’re all in this together. We’ll help you get through the trials. If this is what Rose wants, we have to just trust her judgement until she comes back and can explain herself.”  
I think the whole group was a little shocked that Janine would go out on a limb and blindly trust anyone. Especially Rose. Vasilisa took that into consideration, her face turned thoughtful, “Okay.” She put her head in her hands, “She should be back by tomorrow, she said two days in the letter. She has a lot of explaining to do.”  
Dimitri, who had been silent the whole time, rolled his eyes, “Yes. She does.” I had never seen Dimitri act like this before. Natasha beamed at the group, “Just think of how amazing it would be if Lissa did become queen!” Everyone including me looked at Natasha as if she’d just suggested we get naked and run around the court.  
Christian wrapped his arm around Vasilisa, “C’mon, you need some rest. I’ll take you back to your room. Everyone else will go do their own thing.” He emphasized the last sentence. Adrian put up his hands, “Whoa, we get it. Take Mazur’s suggestion and go make those Dragomir babies.” Vasilisa shot Adrian a dark look, though there wasn’t much mirth there.  
I clapped my hands together, “This has been lovely. Vasilisa, I look forward to you completing your trials, just imagine the gossip you’ll cause then.”  
************************  
“Old man, hey. Don’t freak out, but we won’t make it home on time. Plan’s changed.” I was about ready to pull my hair out. So this is what it feels like to have kids. Janine sat on the couch next to me tugging on my elbow, “Put her on speaker!” she ordered. I glanced at the impatient look on my beloved Janine’s face and complied.  
“Do you care to explain?” I demanded, holding the phone out like it was a magical orb. Janine stared at it like it might make Rose appear. Well, her voice appeared at least, “You sound distant. Am I on speaker?” Janine jerked forward, eyes bugging out, “Rose! What on earth do you think you’re doing! Why would you leave court! The Strigoi have been waiting for you to leave!” she screamed.  
“You told my mom?!” Rose whined, I really did feel like a father of a delinquent child, if only life were that simple. “That’s beside the point Rosemarie,” I said between my teeth. “The plan was that you’d be home tomorrow. What happened?”  
Rose gave us a dramatic sigh, “The plan was to get the child, old man. We’re at Sonya’s house. Robert transformed her. After Sonya calmed down from the initial shock Mikhail was able to convince Sonya to tell us where the child is. We have to go to Detroit, where the child lives.”  
I groaned, “One more day. You have to be back before Vasilisa starts the third trial. No exceptions.”  
I could hear the huge grin in Rose’s voice, “So she got nominated, did she? Good to know my friends listen to me every now and then. Speaking of them, they’ll get worried if I’m not back by the time I said I would be. Tell them that I called you from a payphone or something and let them know I need another day… And dad?”  
The use of “dad” still took me by surprise. Rose’s tone had gone from business to very personal, and nervous. “Yes?” I asked wearily. Rose paused before answering, “Nevermind. Thanks.” The line went dead. Janine balked, “She hung up!”  
“Yes, that’s what people do when they no longer want to talk to you.” I rubbed my temples. Janine shot me a look that said she didn’t appreciate my tone. “How could you let her leave? She’s in danger out there!” Janine pointed, presumably in the direction of “out there”.  
I raised my eyebrows, “She’s in danger here, too. Do you not remember the queen’s murder and Guardian Belikov’s recent trip to the hospital? Besides, she feels passionate about helping the dhampirs and feels that this mission is necessary and her duty as princess. I couldn’t argue with that.”  
Janine’s grimace wouldn’t go away, “Abe, she’s our daughter. It’s our job to protect her, not throw her in the face of danger. The Strigoi have no doubt been waiting for Rose to leave the court. What if she’s ambushed?” Janine was close to tears.  
I cupped her face in my hands, “She the strongest person we know. She gets her strength from you. No Strigoi could take either of my beautiful women down. Rose will be okay, nothing is going to happen to our daughter.” I promised, but I wasn’t sure how much truth was in it.  
I didn’t tell her how worried I was for Rose. I didn’t tell her how I let Rose go because I had to. Rose was relying on me to be a good father and help her. I couldn’t detain her. I didn’t tell Janine how I couldn’t sleep last night because I fear for our daughter’s life.  
Janine closed her eyes and sighed, “Abe…” I wanted to comfort her, honestly I wanted to kiss her. A knock on my suite’s door ruined any chance I had at kissing Janine. She probably would have slapped me anyway.  
“Guardian Belikov,” I stated gruffly. Dimitri stood in the hallway looking tired and disheveled. He nodded as a greeting, “Can we talk?”  
I opened the door wide to let Dimitri in, holding my arm out for him. Janine was already standing when I closed the door.  
Dimitri didn’t bother with pleasantries, “Where’s Rose? I know you know more than you let on earlier.” His tone was cold and frankly scary. It was a scariness that tested my own capabilities. Janine and I exchanged looks. Dimitri had a hard look on his face that said don’t lie to me. He didn’t look like he was leaving anytime soon. “Sit,” I nodded to the lounger across from the couch.  
I sat on the couch, grabbing Janine’s wrist to pull her down next to me. I took a deep breath and smiled, “I don’t know where she is. Only what she’s doing.” Dimitri studied me and Janine. His eyes narrowed, he looked ready to murder someone, “You’re lying. You do know where she is.”  
I waved my hand, doing my best to keep an air of nonchalance, I am the zmey after all. “I knew that she was headed for Kentucky, but she called me not too long ago and said they got new information and are moving to another state. They extended their little trip for another day.” I hoped Dimitri would take the marcels of information and let it be.  
Dimitri leaned back, seeming pleased that I was coughing up information, “What was in Kentucky?” Dimitri had one eyebrow raised, I remember Rose joking with Viktoria about his annoying ability to do that at his memorial in Russia.  
“That,” I said tersely, “is something I don’t know.” My tone left no question that this conversation was over. Dimitri noticed this and didn’t challenge me. He changed topics, “She called you? Is she okay?” he asked softly, worry taking over his features.  
“I’m getting sick of the word ‘okay’. We could say she’s well, healthy, alive, conscious, etcetera.” I ticked off the adjectives on my fingers. Dimitri’s are you serious face told me he didn’t appreciate my response. He took a deep breath, “Then I’ll be going now.” He started to stand but I held up my hand, “Wait.”  
Dimitri settled back into the chair and gave me a questioning look. “As Rose’s father, it is my duty to deem anyone who takes an interest in her worthy of being with her.” Dimitri’s face transformed, he suddenly looked like a young boy under a parent’s scorn. I fought to hide a smug smile. Janine straightened her back, taking a new interest in the topic. Dimitri nodded, telling me he was ready for the infamous talk I gave Adrian.  
“First of all, I’m not an of idiot. I know that you two had some sort of relationship when she was still a student at St. Vladimir’s. That’s why I found her in Russia, is it not?” Dimitri’s eyes widened slightly, he barely managed a nod. I gave him my most sinister smile. If this boy couldn’t handle the full force of zmey he definitely couldn’t handle Rose Hathaway. I was going to give him everything I had.  
“Let’s talk about that, shall we?”


	11. The Red Eyed Ones

Rose’s POV

The second time witnessing a Strigoi being transformed is just as breathtaking as the first. The bright light literally knocked me backward. I had to release my hold on Sonya, but restraining her didn’t even matter anymore. When the white light faded I saw Mikhail crawl over to Sonya on the floor. Sonya was laying in the fetal position, sobbing. Robert lay staring at the ceiling beside her.  
Mikhail started crying too, “Sonya, it’s me! Sonya, oh Sonya. I love you so much.” He touched his forehead to hers. “M-m-mik… hail!” Sonya got out between sobs. Mikhail wrapped Sonya in his arms like a baby, cradling the upper half of her body as her legs still lay sprawled on the floor.  
Eddie looked at me, “That… that’s how it happened with Dimitri?” I nodded slowly, recalling the warehouse. Eddie’s eyes filled with wonder, he shook his head in disbelief. “Wow,” said Eddie wondrously. As happy as I was for the couple, I had a sick feeling resonating in my stomach, “Wow doesn’t even begin to cover it,” I said tonelessly.  
I had an inkling that something was wrong, something was being overlooked. I couldn’t put my finger on what was causing my unease.  
I looked over to Mikhail, “Take Sonya upstairs, she’ll need some rest.” Mikhail nodded, never looking away from his lover. Sydney hadn’t moved from her position pressed up against the wall, her eyes stayed on Sonya.  
Victor scrambled to his feeble brother. He helped Robert move to the couch and lay down there. I felt bad for the middle aged man, he’d used a lot of spirit lately. I shivered when I thought about the darkness that must be creeping into Robert right now.  
I went through the house to find a guest bedroom. I didn’t find one, but I found a linen closet with enough blankets and pillows to create a makeshift bed. I brought the blankets to Eddie, “You need to get some rest. I’ll stay up with the brothers.”  
Eddie gave me a thankful look before setting up the bed in the corner of the living room. I sat down on the lazyboy with my elbows on my knees. Sydney sat in the lazyboy next to mine, she gripped the armrests. My dark hair tumbled forward, covering most of my face from Robert, even though he was unconscious. Victor sat on the couch with Robert’s feet on his lap. Everything was silent for a long time. At least an hour must have passed.  
I started thinking of Randall and Vladimir. I remember Randall biting me, he got a sick smile on his face when I had told him about Dimitri and myself. I broke the silence, just so that I could ignore my sinking gut.  
“Is Robert going to be okay?”  
Victor smiled, I wish I could wipe the smile off of his face. “Yes. He just needs rest. Thank you for the concern.” I frowned, “I’m not concerned for you or your brother. Don’t ever think anything you could do would get me to like you.”  
Victor continued to smile, it unnerved me. I dragged my eyes away from him and examined the room. Eddie lay on the floor with his eyes closed and his chest moving up and down at a steady pace. I wanted to go upstairs and see Sonya, but I wouldn’t leave an unconscious Eddie or Sydney alone with the brothers.  
“I heard that you have picked up your relationship with your former teacher. Not that I’m surprised, you two always seemed to be quite enthralled with each other,” Victor smirked.  
He’s lucky I didn’t punch him right then and there. I spoke through clenched teeth, “That’s none of your business.” Victor looked like he might start laughing, “Perhaps not. How’s Vasilisa? Have you been having any trouble with spirit?” His mocking tone softened to one of genuine interest.  
“No. We have it under control,” I lied. Spirit still terrified me, it’s unpredictable nature always left Lissa and I on our toes. Mostly me, since I always sucked the darkness from Lissa. “Really?” His mocking tone was back, “I didn’t realize spirit could be controlled.”  
I rolled my eyes, “Anything can be controlled.”  
“Not you. You’ve never been in control.”  
I opened my mouth to respond with a bitchy comment but there were footsteps on the stairs. Mikhail came into the living room. He looked sad and unbelievably happy at the same time, “Rose, Sonya’s asking for you.”  
I stood up, “Mind staying down here while Eddie sleeps?” Mikhail shrugged, “Just don’t take too long, I want to go back upstairs.” Mikhail had never seemed so content before. I realized that I didn’t even know Mikhail before the heartbreak of losing Sonya. I’m glad he has her back.  
We brushed shoulders as I passed him. “Don’t let Victor get into your head, just ignore him,” I whispered. The stairs creaked as I traveled up, there was one open door.  
The bedroom had beautiful patterns of blues and greens painted on the wall. The large window was wide open. There was a breeze from outside, I could hear birds chirping and bugs singing. The sunset was visible over the lake.  
Sonya was standing at the window, studying her hand in a patch of sunlight. “Ms Karp?” She turned around to look at me. Her eyes widened with shock and joy, “Rosemarie! I almost didn’t believe Mikhail when he said you were here.” She seemed much happier than Dimitri was after his transformation. I debated whether that was a good or bad thing.  
I shrugged with a small smile, “Here I am. It’s good to see you.”  
Sonya’s face dropped. She looked down to her hands, “Yes. I supposed it would be, now that I’m not a monster?” She shook her head almost violently, “I did so many terrible things…”  
There it was, the guilt that consumed Dimitri for so long, it still does. “That wasn’t you-” I started to comfort her but she held up a hand. She pressed her lips into a tight line, “Mikhail already had this conversation with me. I’ll get through it with time, a lot of time. I don’t really want to talk about it now. Anyway, Mikhail said you came here to find Eric Dragomir’s illegitimate child.”  
I was glad for the topic change. I didn’t feel like having the “I know you killed a lot of people but it wasn’t really you,” conversation. “Er, yes. We found your name on an account that may be tied to the mother of the child. That would mean that you know the mother, that you’re probably a relative.” I don’t know why I was stating all of this, Sonya already knew this.  
The look on her face confirmed as much. She scratched her temple, “I, uh, would love to help you Rose, Princess Hathaway actually,” she gave me a knowing look. “The only problem is that I promised to keep this a secret for the mother.”  
I gave her my best are you serious look. “Ms Karp, this is important for Lissa. I know you care about Lissa. I won’t let any harm come to this child, but we need to know who the child is.”  
Sonya shook her head. I sighed and ran a hand through my tangled hair. I studied her for a moment, debating how low I was willing to go. Very low, apparently. “Tell me. As princess I command you.”  
Sonya barked out a short laugh, “I see you haven’t gotten very eloquent with your words.”  
Mikhail walked in the room and moved by Sonya’s side. “Eddie’s awake now,” he said upon seeing my expression. Mikhail kissed the top of Sonya’s head. She tilted her head up and gave Mikhail a brilliant smile before kissing him.  
I couldn’t help the surge of jealousy I felt, that was how my reunion with Dimitri should have been, not love fades, mine has. I forgave Dimitri and accepted his reasons for staying away from me, but I still felt bitter that he didn’t run straight into my arms after being transformed.  
That wasn’t the only thing making me feel ill, somethings not right here. I couldn’t push back this premonition. Something bad was going to happen.  
I mentally slapped myself, not now Rose. “Sonya, I know that you promised, but we need to find this child. Lissa needs her spot on the council.” Lissa needs to be queen.  
Mikhail tightened his arms around Sonya, “Sonya, please? This child will help the dhampirs. Moroi want to do terrible things to the guardians, and Vasilisa can stop that from happening, but she needs her sibling.”  
Sonya focused her panicked eyes on Mikhail, she bit her lip and shook her head. “I can’t… I promised,” she whispered. Mikhail smoothed down Sonya’s hair, “I know, but we’ve broken promises before, remember?” Mikhail winked and Sonya laughed at the memories.  
Her laughter diffused. A somber look clouded Sonya’s features. She gave an exasperated sigh, “Detroit. We have to go to Detroit.”  
*************************************  
We decided to head back to the hotel and rest for the night. Sonya had no issue with leaving her house behind. Too many memories, I guess. It was in the parking lot of the hotel when I realized what was nagging me in the back of my mind all day. The sun.  
The sun was gone. It had been for hours now.  
I didn’t share my fears with the others, honestly we should have considered this before we left the court. The chances of a Strigoi attacking us once safely inside the hotel were very slim, but stranger things have happened.  
Maybe it was just my paranoia about being out in the open at night, but I swear I could feel eyes watching us. I felt uneasy about the dark shadows behind the lamp posts. As long as my nausea trigger system still worked, there were no Strigoi nearby.  
I felt much better once we all herded into the hotel room. I also felt it was unnecessary for the Dashkov brothers to be with us anymore. I would have to think of a way to ditch them later on. I pulled out my cell phone to call Abe, he didn’t like the new addition to our plan.  
He was upset about it, but not nearly as upset as I was when I heard my mom on the other side of the line. How dare that old man tell my mother? He would probably also disobey my orders to stay away from Dimitri.  
After several long moments I was able to calm down slightly, it would be cruel to keep my mom in the dark. It was cruel to continue keeping my friends in the dark, but I wasn’t going to risk having those lovable fools come after me.  
I had nowhere to go and nothing to do. Sydney was asleep in our room, Mikhail had locked himself and Sonya in his and Eddie’s room and the Dashkov brothers were both asleep in their room. Eddie dozed off on the couch next to me.  
Suddenly a wave of nausea hit me, making me curl over on the couch. I heard screams of agony coming from the floors beneath me.  
There were Strigoi in the hotel.  
I grabbed Eddie’s shoulders and shook him violently. He woke up in a daze, “Get your stake! There’s a Strigoi. Maybe more than one.” I ran over to Mikhail’s room and pounded on the door until a very flustered and messy haired Mikhail wearing only a bathrobe swung the door open, “What on earth-”  
“Get some clothes on, quick! There’s a Strigoi in the hotel.”  
Mikhail swore and turned to grab his bag. I saw Sonya sitting on the bed with the covers pulled up to hide her naked body. I grabbed my stake from next to Robert’s on the coffee table. There were more screams followed by eerie silence, then new screams. Each scream was louder, closer to our suite.  
Mikhail joined Eddie and I in the living room. “Sonya, close and lock the bedroom door,” Mikhail ordered. There was a fierceness in his voice I had never heard before. Surprisingly yet thankfully, Sydney nor the brothers had woken up.  
I could hear multiple pairs of footsteps moving down the hall, they were moving at a leisurely pace. I crouched slightly, holding up my stake in a warrior’s stance. From the corner of my eye I could see Eddie and Mikhail do the same.  
The footsteps stopped just outside the suite’s door. There was a pause in time. Nothing happened, everything was silent. The quiet before the storm.  
The door flew open, and I mean literally flew. The door landed five feet from the frame, I looked up in shock to see four figures storm the room. A fifth figure stood in the hallway, watching.  
Now I know why the guardians use the term buria. The suite had a narrow entryway that forced the Strigoi to enter single file, that gave us a decent enough advantage. Eddie and I rushed forward to meet the first Strigoi, a woman who must have been a Moroi before being transformed.  
Eddie lifted his stake, so I took the role of the distractor. I leaped forward with my fist in front of me. The woman fell back a couple steps, bumping into the Strigoi behind her. This gave Eddie enough time to plunge his stake into the woman’s chest. She crumpled to the ground. Easy enough, now if only we could repeat this until the last Strigoi dropped to the ground.  
The male Strigoi who was behind the woman reacted before Eddie could. He reached out and grabbed Eddie’s arm, yanking the guardian to the soulless monster. Mikhail charged forward, taking the third Strigoi in line.  
Because we’d met the Strigoi in the narrow passageway, they couldn’t move further into the suite without getting through us. I used my strake to hit the Strigoi holding Eddie in the side of the ribs. He snarled in pain and focused on me, letting Eddie go.  
He met my furious gaze. I had seen too many red eyes in my life. The color of blood in his eyes brought back so many unwelcome memories. I screamed like a banshee as I aimed the stake for the monster’s heart. He dodged, taking a step back.  
Eddie was already behind him. He struck his stake through the Strigoi’s back, missing the heart but weakening the Strigoi. I took the crucial step forward and made the kill. Eddie and I shared a brief look of relief before moving on. Mikhail had killed his Strigoi, a man with blood dripping from his beard.  
The last Strigoi was much faster, much older. He didn’t bother with the pleasure of killing for blood. Making the neck a target was harder than simply killing the person. Mikhail, who was closest to the Strigoi, was thrown back. He landed on Eddie, the two men toppled over. The Strigoi ignored me and rushed forward into the living area to continue his attack on Eddie and Mikhail.  
The Strigoi who was standing in the hallway stepped forward and I got my first good look at him. Don’t hesitate. That’s what Dimitri had taught me. I hesitated before and it nearly killed me. I wouldn’t hesitate again, even though Vladimir was standing right in front of me.  
Tears threatened to spring up from my eyes. Vladimir ran forward and lunged for me. I sidestepped him, pressing my back against the wall, just in time. Vladimir had his teeth bared at me. I did my best to avoid eye contact with him, remembering how powerful his compulsion was.  
Our movements became like a sordid dance, he would move forward, I would move back. I realized this made me on the defensive side of things. I needed to kill Vladimir right here and right now.  
I surged forward, my stake angled perfectly. Vladimir waved his hand and suddenly my stake was gone. Vladimir grinned as he pushed me back against the wall. His body was pressed against mine before I could wriggle free.  
“Rose, why haven’t you done off with your dhampir pets yet? I have to say I’m a little disappointed. I thought that the Dragomir princess would be with you when you crossed the wards and turned into a killing machine.” Vladimir had one hand gripping my arm tightly and used his free hand to brush the hair from my face.  
“What a shame!” I spat. I couldn’t even move my legs. I looked anywhere but his eyes. I could hear Eddie and Mikhail still fighting the other Strigoi. Vladimir laughed, “No, what is a shame is that I heard you’ve been crowned princess. Congratulations, by the way. It’s a shame because I do love having a royal’s blood on my hands. I regret that I have to kill you now.”  
I didn’t think he regretted it at all. Vladimir used the hand that brushed my hair back to grab the top of my head and tilt it to the side, exposing my neck. He bent his head down. He was distracted with my neck, he was vulnerable. I found the strength to push Vladimir just as his teeth sunk into my skin.  
I used all of my force to push him backward. His teeth dragged along inside my neck, cutting deep into the skin. He was off me now, surprised that I was able to push him. I used the element of surprise to run into the living room area. Vladimir recovered fast and followed after me. I swiped Robert’s stake off the coffee table just in time to spin around and strike blindly at Vladimir.  
I missed his heart, but only by a few inches. He collapsed in shock, his body immobilizing. I plucked the stake out and stuck him in the heart. I continued stabbing him, tears flowing from my eyes. I stabbed and stabbed the limp body until a strong pair of arms wrapped around my own arms and trapped them. “He’s dead, Rose, stop it,” Eddie panted in my ear.  
“We have to leave now,” Mikhail stood arm in arm with Sonya, looking down on me. I was still on top of Vladimir’s body. I felt my whole body start to tremble. A terrified Sydney joined Mikhail and Sonya in my line of vision. The brothers were still in their room, probably barricading themselves from an attack. Eddie helped me stand up, I glanced at the five bodies lying before me. None of them were Randall. He was still out there somewhere.  
I wiped my cheek with the sleeve of my shirt. Robert could deal with compelling the police. Sydney was already working on destroying the Strigoi bodies. I glanced at Vladimir’s and watched with sick pleasure as he disappeared forever in a ball of vapor. I didn’t want to think of the human bodies in the hotel.  
“Yeah,” I said tonelessly, “let’s get the hell out of here.”


	12. The Return Part II

Dimitri's POV

I felt like a deer caught in the headlights. This must be what Rose felt like when the school board interrogated her after she froze and Stan fake killed Christian. I couldn't answer Abe's question, I didn't know what to say. "When exactly did your relationship with Rose begin?" He repeated. I forced myself to not visibly swallow in front of Rose’s parents.  
If Rose were here she would be able to answer her father and look him directly in the eye. There was no way I could explain what Rose and I had without it sounding really awful. I took a deep breath, "We never had an official relationship. I just knew that I was in love with her for a long time.”  
Janine's face softened a little but she didn't say anything. Abe scrutinized me, "So when did you two became a couple?"  
I shook my head, "We tried not to acknowledge our feelings for each other. I finally told her how I felt and that I was going to ask for a different guardian assignment so that I could be with her the morning of the rescue mission." It was the whole truth, but I wasn’t going to tell Abe what really happened, that was private.  
Janine gasped, "But that's when you..." I nodded, casting my eyes to the ground.  
Abe's shoulders shook as he laughed, "You mean to tell me that you confessed your love for Rose and then died less than twenty-four hours later? That's rotten luck, my boy."  
I was relieved for his laughter and mocking attitude, anything's better than Abe's wrath. I wanted to call Abe out on disobeying his daughter's wishes about talking to me, but I wasn't going to push him.  
Abe's laughter dissolved and turned to more scrutiny, "And how did Rose feel about you? Surely you weren't taking advantages of a student, guardian Belikov." With every ounce of my will and strength, I looked Abe dead in the eye and spoke, "I think you should let Rose answer that one for herself."  
Abe narrowed his eyes but I saw a hint of humor there. Defiance was more of Rose's thing, and I could tell which parent she got it from. I prepared myself for the death threats and kneecap breaking promises from Abe.  
Abe opened his mouth to continue when one of the bedroom doors flew open. Pavel rushed into the room, "Mr Mazur, I'm sorry to interrupt but something's happened." He reached the coffee table and snatched the remote, he started flipping channels until he reached a news channel.  
There was a breaking news report, a somber looking woman stood in front of a hotel, the caption read TEN DEAD IN KENTUCKY HOTEL MASSACRE.  
I had never seen a man as intimidating as Abe Mazur look so scared. "No," he whispered, his eyes bugging out of his head. The guardian pursed his lips and drifted to the corner of the room. Janine jumped into guardian mode, "what's wrong?" She asked.  
Abe glanced at Janine and went back to staring at the TV. I saw him flick his gaze to me for a fraction of a second before answering Janine, "That's… that’s the hotel Rose is staying at."  
Janine and I jumped out of our seats at the same time, as if there were strigoi in the room. My blood turned to ice in my veins. "Call her!" Janine shouted, her face turning red. Leave it to a missing child to be the undoing of a concerned mother.  
Abe scrambled for his phone, his fingers didn't move fast enough for my liking. She's okay she's okay she's okay... She has to be okay.  
Abe put the phone up to his ear. I shook my head, making sure I held his attention, "Put it on speaker." I used as much authority as I could, all of my fear of Abe was replaced by my fear for Rose. Abe nodded, holding the phone out. The phone rang three times before there was a click and the sound of static.  
"Hello? Dad, why are you calling me?”  
I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding when I heard her voice. Abe's shoulders relaxed. Janine was still shaking. Rose’s parents stayed silent. "Rose," I sighed, not knowing what to say except for her name. There was a moment of silence, "Dimitri? What are-"  
Abe cut off anything Rose might have said, "Rose I'm watching the news right now," he spoke through his teeth. "Do you care to explain what the fuck is going on?"  
Hearing an English swear with Abe's Turkish accent sounded strange, maybe that's how Rose felt whenever I swore.  
Rose made an unintelligible noise, "That's on the news already? We just left the hotel!" Rose sighed in exasperation, "You were right, mom. There were strigoi waiting for me to leave court. Five of them attacked us at the hotel." Hearing her voice was like a lifeline after worrying about her disappearance, but her words planted new fears in me.  
Janine snapped, "OF COURSE I WAS RIGHT. COME HOME NOW, ROSEMARIE."  
Rose completely ignored her, "We're all doing okay, I got a nasty cut on my neck and Mikhail hit his head but it's nothing major," she said nonchalantly. "We left the brothers behind, the rest of us took the SUV and we're going to drive through the night."  
The brothers? Rose really did have a lot of explaining to do.  
Abe grimaced at the phone as though Rose could see it, "Little girl, your mother is right. You need to come back to court and let others finish this business." I wouldn't want that curt tone directed at me. It's a good thing Rose doesn't really care about authority figures.  
"No! I'm doing this. Nobody else can. I don't trust anyone else with this. And don't call me little girl, old man." She sounded like a petulant preteen trying to negotiate the terms of her punishment.  
"Rose, please come home. Whatever you're doing it's not worth it." I begged. Janine raised her eyebrows at me. Abe stared at me as we waited for Rose's response. Were they speculating how much weight my words would have with Rose? Under the watchful eyes of Rose's parents, her silence was deafening.  
Rose finally spoke, "Dimitri, I can't. It is worth it. I have to do this. I can explain everything once I get home." There was pain In her voice when she said it. Abe studied me under his gaze, I wish I knew what he was looking for.  
"I love you." She hung up. She didn't say who the words were for but I think it was for all of us. Janine threw her hands up and flopped onto the couch. She covered her face with her hands, came near to tears. I clenched my fist, my nails digging into the skin of my palm.  
Abe leaned his head back to look the ceiling, his chest moving up and down rapidly.  
I recalled my words to Rose from earlier. I think you're a time bomb. I just didn't realize what kind of havoc she would leave in her wake.  
*******************************  
The next two days were the longest days of my life, well, next to Spokane. I spent most of my time pacing the suite's floor, my mom chased me around and tried to keep me calm. Abe hadn't heard from Rose. She stopped calling, only sending texts saying no more than "all good" or "we're fine".  
Lissa went to her monarch trials and completed the first two with ease. Many of the Moroi were taking notice of her and considering her a legitimate candidate they could actually vote for. After each of the trials she would come to Rose's and my suite to worry with me.  
Everyone stayed together, never leaving each others' sides unless necessary. Rose’s friends spent all of their free time milling about the suite as if they could summon her by walking around her home. Everyone ate here, Rose was coming home to no groceries. My family completely abandoned their hotel rooms and stayed with me in the suite.  
As the time passed, more ill feelings grew. People were snapping at each other, sometimes there would be a verbal fight between Tasha and Ethan. They fought about simple things like a misplaced hairbrush, but the tone suggested there was something bigger making them upset.  
Abe kept the private phone designated for Rose in his pocket at all times. He gave up lying to us about knowing Rose's whereabouts, but he wouldn't tell us anything else. Lissa tried unsuccessfully several times to get the phone away from Abe so she could call Rose.  
My mom went into the kitchen to start preparing dinner for all of us, my sisters helped out. Christian sat on the couch with his arm wrapped around Lissa. Abe flipped through the channels on TV without really paying attention to what was on.  
His phone started ringing. Everyone tensed, my mother and sisters ran into the room.  
Everyone watched Abe as if their life depended on it as he pressed the green button. No one asked for the call to be put on speaker, nerves I think.  
Abe listened to the other end for a long time. His serious face broke into a wide grin, "Yes, I'll tell them. See you soon." He put the phone back in his pocket.  
We all watched Abe expectantly. Abe offered a slow and lazy grin, "They're pulling up to court now. She said they'll reach the gates in ten minutes and she wants us to meet her there."  
I was already moving to the door. Everyone pushed and shoved to get out of the suite. Lissa and I led the group with a speed walk. Lissa grinned, “She’s in so much trouble, I’m so mad.” I could see a light in her green eyes that went out when Rose left. I returned her grin, “Yeah, so mad.”  
Our small crowd milling around the gates attracted the attention of Moroi, they figured what we must be waiting for and joined us, standing off to the side and respectfully giving us space. We would be the first ones Rose sees when she gets out of the SUV.  
Hans walked up with a large group of guardians, fourteen of them. They flanked out to make a human wall between us and the growing crowd of spectators. Hans walked right up to Abe and shook his hand, "Princess Hathaway called me. I'm sure you're glad to have your daughter returning safely."  
Abe casually laughed, "There was nothing to be worried about. She's still a guardian down in her core." Just like that Abe waved off all of his stress and torment about Rose's absence.  
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, Sonja wrapped her arms around me. "It's okay, Dimka. You can relax now." I absently put one arm around Sonja, my eyes never left the road leading away from the gate.  
Viktoria laughed, "Are you seriously telling Dimka to relax? Does he even know how to do that?" Lissa smiled at my youngest sister, "He does when Rose is around." My sisters and Lissa giggled at that, though I don’t see how the comment was funny.  
I gasped when I saw a flash of metal reflecting the sunset. Moments later, an SUV appeared and grew larger as it moved toward the gate. Sonja released her hold on me to stand facing the road like the rest of us. The murmurs from the crowd grew louder.  
The SUV pulled up to the gates, the guards at the gate waved it through without even inspecting it. Everyone knew who was in the car. I saw Eddie in the driver’s seat, Mikhail sat in the passenger’s seat with his torso turned to talk to someone behind him. Eddie grinned at the group and eased the car to a stop just in front of us.  
I wanted to move but my joints were frozen. Everything slowed down, the seconds it took for the back doors to open felt like years. I saw her dark brown hair wave in the wind before she even exited the car. All I could see was Rose, nothing else existed in that moment.  
She stood there facing me for a long time. My smile slipped when I realized she didn’t look happy to see me. She had regret and despair engraved onto her features.  
She ran forward, throwing herself into my arms. She let of a sob of relief mixed with sorrow. “Are you angry?” she whispered. I tightened my hold on her, I felt like I could breathe again. “Pissed. Furious. I’m never letting you out of my sight again.” I sighed. I squeez her once more before loosening my hold on her. I crushed my lips to her forehead. “I love you so much, Roza. Don’t ever leave again.”  
Rose laughed, wiping tears from her face, “I love you.” She brought her lips to mine, pulling on my shirt. Only then did our audience exist for me again. I could hear the whispers and Aw’s from the Moroi standing being us. Suddenly I felt self conscious standing here.  
Lissa stepped forward and tapped Rose on her shoulder, “Sorry to interrupt, but I kind of missed you too.” Rose and Lissa embraced, laughing in the way that girls do when they don’t have the right words to say.  
Rose’s hair had fallen behind her shoulders. I saw two adjacent pink lines across Rose’s neck, like a cut that had just begun to heal. She really wasn’t going to leave my sight.  
The others formed a line to hug Rose and the others from the SUV. For the first time I noticed Sonya Karp standing with Mikhail. I felt panic course through me but that was overruled by confusion. Sonya was a Strigoi as far as I knew.  
Hans eyed her but didn’t send any guards for her. I looked back at Rose, wondering how much she could have accomplished in two and a half days.  
I also noticed a young Moroi girl, I remember her from the day I did community service with Rose. Jill, I think her name was, practically salivated from meeting a legend such as Rose Hathaway.  
She didn’t have that same excitement now. She looked shy and terribly awkward. Sonya patted the girls arm and said some comforting things to her. Lissa was also watching Jill suspiciously.  
When Tasha reached Rose, Rose didn’t embrace her. Rose simply stared at the older woman with all emotions hidden from her face. Tasha looked confused and hurt at Rose’s attitude. None of us knew what was going on. Tasha moved to hug Rose, but Rose stepped away from her. “Hans!” Rose called out, keeping her eyes on Tasha.  
Tasha’s confused expression turned to understanding. A fake smile was etched on her face. She clasped her hands in front of her, “Ethan, dear, come here.”  
“Yes, Princess?” Hans said. Rose lifted her head in the way she always did when she was on display in front of the court. Her eyes were devoid of any emotion. She spoke loud and clearly so that the whole crowd could hear her, “Take Natasha Ozera and Ethan Moore into custody for my assault, kidnapping and attempted murder.”  
**********************************  
Rose sat in the metal folding chair across from Hans in the interrogation room. She convinced him to let me, Lissa, Eddie, Adrian, Mikhail and Sonya, her parents and my family observe from behind the trap mirror. “I only want to explain it once,” she had told him. Christian refused to come. Jill came with us because she had nowhere else to go. I was still unsure of her presence.  
I came for Rose, even though I don’t want to hear what she’s going to say about Tasha. Betrayal coursed through me. Rose wouldn’t lie about something like this, and I saw the truth in Tasha’s eyes when they hauled her away. How could she?  
The thirteen of us stood uncomfortably close to each other as we watched Rose and Hans lean into the table and sip coffee. Hans hasn’t asked any questions yet.  
Rose looked at the mirror, her eyes moving over the surface as though she could see all of us through it. “Are they all in there?” she asked. Hans nodded and took another sip of coffee.  
Rose took a deep breath and sighed, “Then I’m ready to tell you everything.”  
“Alright, Princess. I guess what I want to know first is why you didn’t turn Tasha and Ethan in earlier.” Hans studied Rose suspiciously. Rose nodded, “I didn’t remember then. I got my memories back when I left court. Oh, by the way I want Eddie and Mikhail exempt from any punishment for helping me.” Rose paused, waiting for Hans to respond with a nod before continuing.  
“My memories were triggered by crossing the wards. I was compelled to forget until I left court. That’s not important, though. I was kidnapped the night that Dimitri went to church for the first time after being transformed. I remember seeing him there before I went back to my room.” Rose’s voice trailed off, I could tell she was reliving the church service.  
Love fades, mine has. I have never regretted words so much.  
“Yes, it is my understanding that Guardian Belikov said some upsetting things to you at the church service, that’s why your friends believed you ran away.”  
Rose pursed her lips and nodded, “Yes, I was upset. I went to my room to be alone. I took a shower, I got out when I heard a knock at my door. Tasha was there with Ethan. She came into the room complaining about how you were making Dimitri jump through hoops to prove he was a dhampir. She said she came to me because I would understand her frustration.” Hans nodded along, jotting down notes here and there.  
Rose wrapped her arms around herself, she hunched over in her seat. She looked so small. “I told her that I didn’t really want to talk about Dimitri. She was fine with that, looking back now I think she just used Dimitri as an excuse to get into my room. We talked about me becoming her guardian. She requested me.”  
Hans grunted, “You were going to be her guardian?” Rose rolled her eyes, “Well, at the time it didn’t look like I could have been Lissa’s guardian.”  
Hans shrugged, “Okay, so what happened after that?”  
Rose tensed, “We were making small talk, laughing about stupid things. I didn’t pay attention to Ethan. He just sat there. Tasha leaned close to me, she said she had to tell me a secret. I thought it was funny at the time, that she would lean so close when we were basically alone. I played along though. I leaned in to hear what she wanted to say…”  
Rose closed her eyes. A painful expression clouded her face. Hans gestured with his hand, “And then what?” He asked impatiently. Rose opened her eyes, a tear fell down her cheek.  
“And then she bit me.”


	13. The Interrogations

Rose’s POV

“I tried to fight her at first, but then Ethan restrained my arms. Soon enough the endorphins took over and I… just stopped resisting. She drank until I was almost unconscious and compelled me to write the letter to Lissa. Ethan… he bashed my head against the wall and I blacked out.” I shrugged, there wasn’t much else to say. Hans moved his arm in a circular motion, urging me to go on.  
"What happened when you woke up?" Hans asked, tapping his pen on the table. I could tell that my recounter of events was making him anxious, maybe even a little upset. I wonder how my friends and family were holding up behind the trap mirror.  
"Tasha wasn't there. Her and Ethan took off. I woke up in a car with a group of humans working for the Strigoi. As soon as I woke up they injected me with something to keep my muscles limp and weak. The Strigoi sent me back two weeks later. I was compelled to forget everything after the church service."  
I felt cold, though the room was a comfortable temperature.  
Hans didn't seem pleased with my summary, "What did the Strigoi do to you?" He asked.  
I narrowed my eyes at him, "That's not important. All you need to know is that Tasha planned my disappearance. The Strigoi told me that Tasha asked them to kill me, but they didn't want to be controlled by a Moroi. That's why they kept me alive.” My tone grew cold, chilling the air even more.  
Hans shook his head, "I find that hard to believe. I'm sorry, Princess, but do you expect me to buy that your friend plotted to murder you?" I clenched my fist, hoping my voice didn’t shake, "She tried to kill me." I bit down on my tongue to keep back from shouting obscenities about her.  
Hans raised an eyebrow, "Why would she do that?"  
I tasted rust in my mouth. I unclenched my teeth to release my tongue. I had to take two slow breaths before I could speak. Just say it, Rose. "Because Dimitri and I were together... Before. Tasha found out about it and held a grudge against me. She didn't know that Dimitri had pushed me away after his transformation, he told me that he didn’t want to be with me. She thought that he still loved me. As long as I was around she couldn't be with him."  
Hans leaned back in his seat, his lips flattened into a tight line as he processed the bomb I just dropped. I had just called out mine and Dimitri’s student-teacher relationship. Fear coursed through me, Hans could come down hard on Dimitri and punish him. What have I done? Stupid, Rose.  
Hans glanced at the mirror as if he could see Dimitri through it, "Well I guess it's too late to do anything about that now. You've already graduated and there's no proof." I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding. We were being let off the hook. A fresh respect for Hans grew in me.  
I offered Hans a small smile. Hans returned the small smile, he had pity in his eyes. I changed my mind, I wasn't grateful for being off the hook if it was only because Hans pitied me. That seemed pathetic, weak.  
"Well then. We'll talk to Tasha and Ethan, if they plead guilty or if any more evidence shows up they will be charged with high treason for the assault and kidnapping of a Princess." Hans clapped his hand on the table and stood up. He moved to the door.  
"No." I spluttered.  
Hans turned to face me, "Excuse me? I thought that's what you wanted."  
I shook my head, my shoulders sagging even further. I just wanted to get some rest. Probably alone, too. Dimitri wouldn't want to talk to me after this.  
"I do want them punished... But I was still a Guardian at the time. Punish them for the kidnapping of Guardian Hathaway, not Princess Hathaway." As much as I hated Tasha, I couldn't stand the idea of having her executed. I asked myself why I was protecting her, was it for her? For Dimitri, or Christian? Surely not for me, right?  
Hans looked at me for a long time. He thought he was doing me a favor by sentencing Tasha and Ethan to death, but it would only mean I would have their blood on my hands. Hans pressed a little red button on the wall before he moved back to the table, taking a seat. He nodded to the mirror, "They won't be able to hear this part of our conversation. Are you aware that Matthew Drozdov was taken into custody? He was considered a suspect in the queen's murder."  
I furrowed my eyebrows, not understanding how Lord Drozdov had anything to do with this. I nodded, trying to piece the puzzle together.  
"Clare was bitten until she was near unconsciousness, then compelled to kill the queen... And to kill you."  
"Yes I know all of this. What does any of that have to do with Tasha and Ethan?" I answered my own question as the words slipped out of my mouth. Clare was bitten then compelled, the assailants goal was to kill me. Tasha had everything to do with this.  
Hans broke me out of my reverie, "Lord Drozdov is being released, he has an alibi. He was with Princess Ava and many other Drozdovs at a family event that night. He couldn't have compelled Clare, security footage shows him in the ballroom at all times. Clare wasn't even there with him."  
I nodded again, already knowing what he was about to say. "Well, he's not responsible, but another Moroi is. A Moroi that bites and compels her victims. A Moroi that wants you dead. A Moroi that we both know hated the queen."  
Unwelcome tears streamed down my face, "You think Tasha killed the queen." Betrayal and disgust threatened to consume me.  
The idea shocked me, yes, but it also made sense.  
Hans shrugged, "Based on what you told me in this room, the parallels can't be a coincidence. I want to question her. The only problem is, even if we have no doubt to believe she compelled Clare to kill the queen, there isn't enough evidence. All we have is your word that Natasha Ozera and Ethan Moore attacked a Princess and valuable asset to the dhampir community," his eyes begged me to understand what he was saying.  
My mind felt like pudding, I could barely form the words I had to say. It didn't feel real, "You want me to charge Tasha and Ethan with high treason for my assault and kidnapping... Because you can't charge them with high treason for murdering the queen?"  
Hans smiled grimly, "Take some time to think about it. I hope we can come to an agreement, Princess."  
Hans left the table and held the door open for me. The door next to it opened and all of my friends and family filed into the hallway wearing similar looks of pain and disgust.  
Dimitri approached me first, taking my hand in his, "What did Hans want? Why did he turn off the microphone?"  
I shook my head, "I'll tell you later. Not here." Dimitri pressed his lips to my forehead. He smoothed down my hair, "Are you okay?" I knew that he wasn't talking about the interrogation. I couldn't believe it, even after everything I had just said about his friend he was worrying about me.  
I squeezed his hand, "Yes. Are you?" I could tell Dimitri was about to brush it off but he saw the imploring look in my eyes. He took a deep breath, "I just can't believe she would do that... I don't want to talk about it. Not here at least."  
Everyone stayed silent as we walked over to my suite. Mikhail and Sonya broke off to go to his room, I'm glad Hans took faith in my word when I called him to explain Sonya's condition. I feared she would be under attack like Dimitri was, but Hans left her alone.  
Adrian walked away, too. He lit a cigarette as he moved toward the building that housed all of the court’s bars.  
"Where's Lissa?" I asked. I didn't even notice her absence in the hallway. "She left earlier, she's at the third monarch trial right now," my mom explained. I glanced over at Jill and winked at her. Nobody's asked about her presence yet, there was just too much going on. Jill kept her eyes glued to the ground as we walked. Guilt racked through me. I felt responsible for her world being turned upside down.  
"Can't you tell where Lissa is through the bond?" Viktoria asked curiously. She took my arm in hers as we walked, I'm glad I had someone as positive as Viktoria around, we would need her positive attitude around here.  
"Yeah I guess I can," I sighed. "I just haven't been able to concentrate that well lately." Dimitri squeezed my hand to comfort me.  
We reached my suite, walking in I felt like a stranger in my own home. So much has happened since the last time I was here. I looked around my gloom companions. "I don't know about you guys, but I could go for some alcohol right now," I joked. My mom glared at me, "That's not funny, Rose. You're not old enough to drink."  
Olena eyed my mom, I remember how Dimitri's mother let me get absolutely hammered at her home in Russia. I mean, Dimitri had just died, but still. Looking at Olena I thought of Randall, I remembered him telling me how he would torture Olena, and how he wanted to torture me. I pushed the thought out of my head.  
I shrugged, "Maybe just some soda then, do you guys want anything?" I offered as I made my way to the kitchen. I heard voices coming from the kitchen.  
I walked in to see Yeva sitting with Paul, Zoya and Katya, Sonja’s newborn daughter. Paul jumped up when he saw me, "Rose!" Paul embraced me, he buried his face into my stomach. "Hey there! I missed you!" I felt guilty for forgetting about the rest of Dimitri's family. Yeva must have babysat when the others left to see me.  
"Yeva said you're my aunt now. Can I call you Aunty Rose?" Paul looked up at me hopefully. I stood there frozen, barely processing his words. So the scheming grandma is tying the knot for Dimitri and I? I would have to talk to her later about the terms of my relationship with Dimitri. Actually, I would have to talk to Dimitri about that too.  
"Paul, you should call her Princess Rose, that's her official title now," Sonja said from the doorway, a content smile on her face. Dimitri joined her, watching me carefully to see what I would say. I couldn't help the grin that took over my face, "No, don't call me that. Call me Aunty Rose, I like the sound of that."  
********  
I closed the door on ours guests, having finally convinced them I needed to get some rest. Jill fell asleep in my bedroom over an hour ago, she had a big day ahead of her tomorrow. I checked in with Lissa and saw her with Christian, comforting him. I understood that he didn’t want to see me, but I still felt the pang of hurt that I was causing everyone around me pain. I was only the messenger in this situation, but history has proved that people don’t feel to kindly toward messengers of bad news.  
Dimitri went straight into the kitchen instead of his bedroom. I followed him in just in time to see him pull a bottle of Russian vodka out from behind the flour. “Hide it behind the cooking ingredients. Good idea, Comrade, I would have never looked there.”  
He simply nodded as he poured the drink, filling the glass to the brim. I let out a sigh, “I’ll take some of that.” Dimitri grabbed another glass without a word. Once that one was only halfway full he brought both glasses and the bottle to the breakfast bar. I gingerly sat on the stool next to Dimitri’s, he took a large gulp of the vile drink.  
“Are you okay?” I whispered, realizing how stupid the question was, of course he wasn’t okay. Dimitri looked sideways at me for a fraction of a second before staring at the wall in front of him. “You’re seriously asking me that? You, of all people?” he snapped. His jaw remained clenched as if he were biting back more words. He took another swig of the vodka. I copied him, holding back the gag of disgust that came with the bitter taste.  
“I’m sorr-”  
“Don’t,” he cut me off, “Do not say you’re sorry.” Silence. I almost thought I could here Jill breathing through the walls. “You have nothing to apologize for,” he whispered in an agonized voice. I took a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh. Dimitri finished off his glass in one final gulp and reached for the bottle of vodka. “You’re angry,” I stated as if he didn’t know exactly how he felt. “Yes. But I’m not angry at you. I just… It’s all too much. I trusted her.” Dimitri poured a new glass, to the brim again.  
“I’m still the reason you’re upset,” I pleaded, letting my own petty emotions take over. I rested my hand on his arm. Dimitri tensed under my touch, or from the words I just said. He swiveled in his chair to face me, I could see the misery clear as day on his face. “Roza, no. Tasha is the reason I could kill someone right now. I would kill her, probably.” He brushed the hair from my face before wrapping his fingers around my wrist. “Dimitri…”  
He tugged me forward, making me stand between his legs. He wrapped his arms around me, nuzzling his face in the crook of my neck. “I love you so much, Roza. I don’t even think you know how much I love you. As much as I loved Tasha, I will never be able to forgive her for what she did to you, for what she planned to do to you. I’ve told you that I would do anything to keep you safe before, and I mean it more than ever now,” he tightened his hold, “I can’t live without knowing you’re safe, preferably in my arms. Tasha’s dead to me.”  
I closed my eyes, concentrating on his voice. His words both comforted me and stung like a wasp. I couldn’t help the guilt that I made him lose a friend, and that I was possibly sentencing that friend to death. “Dimitri, I love you. I know how much you cared for Tasha, I liked her a lot, too. I’m here for you, you don’t have to write her off and act strong for me. I know this is hurting you, let me comfort you.”  
I wrapped my arms around Dimitri’s neck, our bodies pressed fairly close together. Dimitri ran his hand up and down my back, “You are comforting me. By being here, at home. With me.” Dimitri brought his face close to mine, his lips touched mine briefly, softer than feathers. I started to relax in his arms, thinking we could sleep this off and momentarily pretend it was all some sick joke.  
Suddenly, the muscles in Dimitri’s back tensed and he pulled away to look at me.  
“Rose, you didn’t have to tell Hans what happened to you with the Strigoi, but you have to tell me,” he demanded. I’d expected this, Dimitri wasn’t going to let it go. I twisted in Dimitri’s arms to grab my drink and tip it back all the way. I downed the glass in two gulps. I backed up against Dimitri and rested my head on his chest, Dimitri tightened his grip around my waist, waiting for me to start talking.  
I closed my eyes and mentally mapped out the conversation. I thought of the best way to explain things to him in the least upsetting way. Dimitri kissed the top of my head then moved his head to the side and lay his cheek on my head. “It’s all a big daze,” I began. “I was high most of the time. They kept feeding from me.”  
“They?”  
“Yes. Vladimir Ivashkov and… and… and Randall,” my voice broke on the last word. I hated saying this to Dimitri, I wish I was brave enough to look him in the eyes as I said it. Dimitri’s whole body tensed, his voice came out shaky and nervous, “Randall Ivashkov?”  
“Yes,” I whispered, my arms gripped his, trying to comfort him in any small way I could. “Rose… Do you know who-”  
“I know that he’s your father, Dimitri. He told me.” Dimitri started shaking, I made him release his grip on me so that I could turn around and look at him. Tears pooled in his eyes, some escaped and streamed down his face. His hands were visibly shaking, they looked blurry, and I don’t think that’s from the alcohol.  
I used my thumbs to wipe the tears from his face, “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have told you.” Dimitri didn’t even hear me, he stared off into space as more tears danced across his cheeks. I’m a terrible person, I thought. I never should have mentioned Randall. I grabbed Dimitri’s shaking hand and pulled him away from the breakfast bar.  
Dimitri let me lead him to his room, which had become more like our room. I walked over to the bed and pushed him down into a sitting position before letting his hand go. Dimitri had stopped crying and shaking, he now just stared blankly at nothing in front of him. I went over the his dresser and pulled out a large T-shirt and sweatpants. I started stripping off my clothes.  
“Rose, what has he done to you?” Dimitri asked in a hoarse voice. I got all of my clothes off and put on Dimitri’s T-shirt. I went over to the bed and started unbuttoning Dimitri’s shirt. “He fed from me. He liked to get inside my head. That’s how he knew about us,” I spoke in a calm, controlled voice as I worked to undress Dimitri. He sat there, frozen like a statue as I worked the clothes off of him.  
“He didn’t do anything to me physically, until I started trying to escape. I thought I was strong enough to make it out of the house and I was stupid enough to think he would leave me alone. He heard me leave the room I was kept in and he was there in front of me like lightning. I still tried to fight my way passed him, he won both times.”  
“Both times?”  
“Yeah. I tried to escape twice. After that he compelled me to stay put and I did, for a week. Then I was released.” I got Dimitri’s shirt off and threw it on the floor. I unbuttoned his jeans and pulled the zipper down. “Stand up,” I ordered. He did, his movements were robot like. I yanked his jeans down and handed him the sweat pants. He stepped out of the jeans, “Randall did some pretty awful things to my mom as a Moroi. I know him, Rose. He didn’t just play mind games with you, tell me what he did.”  
Once the sweatpants were on Dimitri I pushed him back down onto the bed and crawled into his lap. “Actually, Randall still thinks that you’re a Strigoi. He heard that you’d been turned but word hasn’t spread about your transformation. I told him that you wanted to turn me yourself. He was smart enough to keep away from something that belonged to you. He didn’t touch me, Dimitri. I promise. You still scare the shit out of him,” I grinned just to see if I could lighten the mood. Dimitri was looking at my face though, he was concentrating on the pink lines on my neck.  
“You don’t belong to me, Rose. I don’t own you,” he said absentmindedly. My fake grin turned into a genuine smile, “I know that, but Randall doesn’t. He thought of me as someone else’s property, and that protected me from him, so I never bothered to correct him.”  
Dimitri tentatively traced the tip of his index finger along the scar on my neck, “The Strigoi at the hotel… Were they the same Strigoi who took you?”  
“I killed Vladimir there,” I said bluntly, “He had other Strigoi I didn’t recognize with him,” I searched Dimitri’s face, there was no emotion in his eyes. I could usually figure what Dimitri was feeling when he went all deadpan, but not this time. “Randall wasn’t there,” I said.  
Dimitri closed his eyes for a long time. I watched his face, looking for even the slightest of movements. Nothing. “Randall is still out there,” Dimitri stated. He opened his eyes to look at me for a confirmation. I nodded slowly, wondering how much heartache Dimitri could take in one night. He fall back on the bed, pulling me on top of him.  
Dimitri’s hands roamed my arms and back, my head lay on his chest. “What do we do now?” he asked in a shaky breath. I craned my head up and reached over his head to the lamp, twisting the little knob and encasing us in comfortable darkness. The first signs of sunset played with the curtains.  
I kissed Dimitri lightly on the lips before resting my head back on his chest, feeling relief and warmth for the first time in the last three days. “Now we get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.”


	14. Moans and Sighs and Screams, Oh My!

Rose’s POV

I stared straight ahead of me outside the bedroom’s only window, my head moving up and down with Dimitri’s even breaths. I woke up ten minutes ago and saw the long shadows created by the buildings from the sunset. I tried my best to lay still and allow Dimitri to sleep longer but my stomach decided to become an orchestra. Dimitri groaned and his arms tightened around me, I wiggled around so that I could gaze at his face. His eyelids fluttered open and a smile played at the corners of his lips.  
“Good morning, beautiful,” he whispered. I leaned down and gave him a light peck on the lips, “Have you forgotten we live with vampires? It’s evening.” Dimitri’s hands snaked up to cup my face, “We just woke up, we say ‘good morning.’” He pulled my face down to his, our faces less than an inch apart. I studied his features, the lines under his eyes that weren’t just from fatigue. I ran my fingers across his five o’clock stubble, wondering how I could make the pain go away. Not just his pain, but my pain too, along with Christian’s.  
Before I could ease any pain I had to cause more. I put Tasha in jail, I told Dimitri that his own father was responsible for my nightmares and now I was going to make sure Lissa became queen. I hated myself for what I was going to do today. It’s for the better, I reminded myself. The dhampirs needed this, Lissa deserved this. I lost myself in thought staring at Dimitri’s cheek, he brushed some hair behind my ear, “Are you okay?” he asked in a cautious tone.  
I narrowed my eyes at him, “Fine.” I wouldn’t let Dimitri walk on eggshells around me, I had to prove to him somehow that I wasn’t fragile, that everything that happened to me hasn’t broken me. “Are you?” I asked, careful to not use the same tentative tone as Dimitri. He shrugged and turned his head to look out the window, “I will be. As long as I have you by my side, I’ll be perfect.” Dimitri’s eyes scanned my body, the duvet had been kicked off sometime while we slept.  
I saw Dimitri’s forlorn expression change to one of desire, “I’m back to being your guardian, and as your guardian, I must insist that this sleeping arrangement be permanent. So that I can keep an eye on you, of course.”  
I propped myself up on my elbow, laying sideways next to him. “You know you don’t have to pretend to be okay around me, and your sex jokes are terrible when you’re not really into it.”  
Dimitri’s smile grew into something more genuine, “Sex joke?” He chuckled, shaking his head, “Rose, we haven’t done anything besides kissing since we officially became a couple. You pushed me away last time I tried to get your clothes off, remember?” The new topic of conversation appealed to me much more than Tasha and Randall.  
I ran my hand down his chest and stomach, stopping at the waistband of his sweatpants, I hooked my fingers in and tugged lightly, “Well, I’m not running away anytime soon, and I don’t think anyone will walk in on us this time.” I leaned in, bringing my lips close to his ear. “We have more than an hour before we actually have to get out of bed,” I whispered suggestively.  
My words sent us both over the edge, we knew that we weren’t going to hold back this time. There wasn’t any good reason we shouldn’t do it right then and there. It felt so good to finally really be with Dimitri- no rules, no limitations.  
I felt some of my grief fade away as our clothes came off and our bodies pressed against each other. Both of us gave in to the animal inside of us, biting and scratching each other in a frantic attempt to get our bodies closer together.  
Once we couldn’t get any closer we remained that way for a long time, my body moving in sync with his. We kept kissing, my lips to his lips, his lips to my collarbone and other, lower places. We continued with the kisses even though both of us were out of breath, leaving us panting and gasping in between moans.  
Afterward, we lay in each other’s embrace, covered in a sheen of sweat. My stomach growled at me but I ignored it, I had something much more important on my mind at the moment. I met Dimitri’s lazy gaze and offered a devilish grin, “I need a shower. Join me?”  
*****************************  
“Well, you certainly have a lot up your sleeve,” Dimitri whispered to me as we made our way to Lissa’s suite. She walked ahead of us with Christian, both of them pointedly ignoring me. Jill had been taken by Hans, hidden for her own protection.  
When we got to the ballroom early in the evening I sought out Adrian’s father and requested to give a speech of my own. He reluctantly agreed, and I had the floor after Lissa’s empowering speech. After I delivered the news of Jill’s heredity the whole court started shouting. The vote was still being held today, though, only now Lissa’s name was included on the ballot.  
Lissa ducked out of the ballroom as soon as she could, I followed her out. The court seemed empty now, only because all of the residents and visitors were voting at the courthouse. Through the bond I could feel Lissa’s discontent at being in the spotlight like this, let alone her mixed feelings at learning she has a sister.  
Lissa flung the door to her suite open and went straight for the bathroom. Christian tried to follow her in but she slammed the door, I heard the click of the lock being set in place. I felt her let go of the control she had on her emotions and allow herself to break down, I heard her sobbing through the walls.  
Dimitri closed the suite’s door behind us. Christian turned around to glare at me, “What the fuck do you think you’re doing Rose? What have you done to Lissa?” I sank into the couch, covering my face with my hands. “I’m doing what’s best for the dhampirs, and for Lissa,” I mumbled, I couldn’t even convince myself at this point. Suddenly my plans to make Lissa queen didn’t seem that great.  
Christian laughed without any humor, “No, Rose. You’re doing what’s best for you. You got rid of Tasha so that you could keep Dimitri all to yourself, and now you’re going to have a queen that listens to you more than anyone else on the council.” I put my hands down to look Christian in the face, but I didn’t have it in me to correct him- part of me believed he was right. I recalled Randall’s words, You’ll be nothing, and when I give you back to the Moroi, they won’t even want you.  
Dimitri glared at Christian, “Don’t you dare,” he seethed, “You have absolutely no idea what Tasha has put Rose through, Tasha even admitted to it! And Rose is doing what’s best for the dhampirs. You don’t know what some of the Moroi have planned for us, for the younger generations of guardians. Rose is protecting the dhampirs from enslavement.”  
The news of Tasha’s confession resonated through me, had she confessed to killing the queen, too? Christian seemed surprised at Dimitri’s outburst, my tall Russian was supposed to be the levelheaded one, after all. Christian shook his head, “I can’t deal with either of you right now. You’re both fucking insane.”  
Christian went into Lissa’s bedroom and closed the door. I peeked into Lissa’s mind to find her much calmer now. She was replaying the events of the last week, seeking reason in this chaos. I decided now was my best opportunity to talk to her, I got up from my seat and knocked on the bathroom door. Lissa’s suite had one bathroom connected to the living room. I couldn’t help but think of the new, lavish suite she would live in as queen.  
I heard sniffling from the other side of the door, “Yes?” she asked. I leaned my forehead on the door, “Talk to me Liss. Tell me you hate me, I want to hear it all.” I spoke earnestly, I could feel all of her rage for me so she might as well admit it to my face. I heard Lissa make a half-laugh-half-cry noise, “I don’t hate you, Rose.” The door opened a crack, I peeked through the small space, “Yeah? That’s good. We’re supposed to be the fairy-tale princesses.”  
Lissa opened the door all the way and made her way for the tissues on the coffee table. “Well we can’t be that if I’m going to be the queen,” Lissa whispered. The muscles in her shoulders relaxed as I wrapped my arms around her. “I’m sorry, Liss. I thought it was a good idea,” I muttered into her shoulder.  
Lissa pushed me away, “A good idea! Rose, I’m eighteen. I haven’t even been on the council as princess yet!” Lissa tugged on her golden hair, her eyes wide with disbelief. “What if I actually win the election?” she whispered in a panicked voice.  
I grinned, “Then you’ll be the best damn queen the Moroi and dhampirs have ever seen. I’ve got your back, Liss. Now please, tell me I made a good decision and not a typical Rose Hathaway impromptu decision.”  
Lissa dropped her hands, her mouth also dropped to gape at me, “Of course it was a typical Rose Hathaway stupid decision! But… it was also a good decision.” Lissa shook her head, “That doesn’t make sense, let me rephrase. You shouldn’t have done it, but it was the right thing to do.” She stepped forward and took me in her embrace.  
“You better be there for me every step of the way, or you’ll have hell to pay,” Lissa warned in a serious voice. No mockery here, not with her emotions so strung out. Christian opened the bedroom door and took in the scene in front of him. His grimace slowly faded into something more calm and controlled, and completely fake. I imagined he wanted to set me on fire right then, and I wouldn’t blame him if he did it.  
Dimitri tensed up as Christian made his way to me and Lissa. I stepped away from Lissa and allowed Christian to put his arms around her in a comforting manner. I retreated to Dimitri and held his hand, “I want to stay here until we get the results from the election.” Dimitri looked incredulously at me, “That could take hours, Rose. Did you see the line outside the courthouse?”  
I shrugged. “Then let’s go get something to eat and come back. I need to be with Lissa when we find out who the monarch is.” Dimitri gave me a sultry look, “Do you think we have time for anything else after lunch?” His suggestive tone surprised me, he wasn’t usually this forward. I lightly smacked his arm, “Now look who has things up his sleeve.”  
“I’m so glad you two are the picture of happiness, despite all of the people suffering around you,” Christian remarked snidely. Dimitri lost all of his smolder to glare at Christian. He opened his mouth to say something but I cut him off, “Don’t. Let him be angry. He has every right.”  
Dimitri cut his gaze to me, “He shouldn’t be angry at you. You don’t deserve this.” I felt Christian’s eyes figuratively burning holes into me as I chose my next words carefully. “Let it go, Dimitri. If he wants to be angry with me, so be it.” I decided to leave Tasha’s name out of this little exchange, afraid that hearing her name would tip Christian over the edge.  
I ignored Christian’s eyes as I turned to face Lissa, “We’ll be back soon, to give you some space,” and Christian, too. Dimitri and I went back to our suite to make lunch, none of the restaurants were open right now. Dimitri started rambling about Christian’s behavior as he got out the bread and chicken. I pinched the bridge of my nose, “Dimitri, he doesn’t want to believe anything I said about Tasha. Can you blame him? And we both know that you’re not upset about Christian. We can’t avoid the subject of you father forever. Let’s just talk about it.”  
Dimitri dropped the plate he was holding, causing it to fracture and splay across the floor. Dimitri barely noticed, he looked at me with fury in his eyes, “Don’t call him my father, Rose. He’s nothing to me.” I pursed my lips, I left my seat from the breakfast bar to pick up the larger chunks of plate from the floor.  
“He is something to you. He’s haunted you for a long time, Dimitri.” I put the pieces of plate in the garbage and went to the closet in the kitchen to get the broom. “I’m over it, honestly,” I lied. “Randall can’t do anything to me now. Especially if I have you by my side.” I handed Dimitri the broom and signaled for him to clean up his mess. I took over making the sandwiches for him as he swept.  
“Roza, please stop lying to me. I can take the truth, but I can’t stand not knowing what he really did to you. Just tell me. Please.” he pleaded desperately. I put two plates on the breakfast bar and took the broom from Dimitri’s white knuckled grip, “Sit down and eat.”  
Dimitri did as I said, “You can’t avoid me by telling me what to do. Take your pants off. Eat a sandwich. Offering me with every man’s dream won’t distract me.” My shoulders shook with laughter as I put the broom away. I joined him at the breakfast bar and took a huge bite of my sandwich. I chewed slowly as I thought of the right words to say, as I did I felt Dimitri’s gaze on me.  
I swallowed and jumped into the story, sugar-coated, of course. “Randall liked to play games with me. He used compulsion to learn more about you, about us. It was pure luck that he didn’t learn you had been transformed, I needed him to believe that you were still a Strigoi. Once he knew enough about us-”  
“How much is enough?”  
“Huh?”  
“How. Much. Is. Enough?”  
“Everything. He knew everything up to my time in Russia. He used this information to mess with me, he would compel me to have morphed memories of you. Instead of a stolen kiss in the training room I remembered it as you being overly aggressive during the session, you hurting me a little bit here and there. He made small changes only in my memories of you, but these changes added up and kept building a resentment for you. Randall made me hate you while I was there. The worst thing he did to me physically was let me go a couple days at a time without food.”  
I started at my sandwich for a long time. Neither of us said anything. I picked up my sandwich and took a bite, hoping Dimitri would say something. I couldn’t take the silence any longer, “That’s all he did, Dimitri. I promise. The false memories of you faded as soon as I got back to court, I only remember the false memories as what they are- fake, made up. Randall made a mistake when he was compelling me, and I pushed the fake memories back, even though he intended to make me hate you.”  
Dimitri sat motionless, his sandwich untouched. “You promise that’s all he did to you?” he asked, disbelief lacing his voice. I tried to quirk an eyebrow up, but both eyebrows shot up at the same time, “Yes.” Dimitri looked me in the eye, then. I could see the doubt clearly written on his face. “I can’t believe that, Roza. You don’t have to lie to protect me.”  
I sighed, my hands ran through my hair in a frustrated gesture. “God dammit, Dimitri! That’s all he did! What do you want me to say? That he beat me senseless? That he hit me like he hit your mother? That he raped me and tried to take me away from you? Because he didn’t. You beat the crap out of him when you were just a freaking child and you petrify that monster even though he’s a Strigoi,” I screamed loud enough to make Dimitri flinch, or maybe it was my rape comment that made him flinch.  
I left the kitchen and went into Dimitri’s room. In a blind rage I started haphazardly grabbing Dimitri’s things and toting them over to my room. As long as I kept my hands busy I wouldn’t punch a wall, or Dimitri.  
I realize that being angry at him wasn’t rational, but I couldn’t help the fury that coursed through my veins from talking about Randall. What the hell Rose? You were able to keep calm last night, I thought. “Yeah, well. I can only hold it all in for so long,” I muttered to myself.  
Dimitri came and stood in the hallway between our bedroom doors and watched my progress as I moved his belongings to my, our, room. “We should share the master, not the guest room,” I explained as I passed him in the hallway. Dimitri nodded, still in a stupor from earlier, and joined me in moving his belongings. I guess neither of us were in the mood for what Dimitri suggested earlier.  
We worked silently, grabbing handfuls of clothes and books to carry across the hall. I shoved my clothes aside to make room for Dimitri’s things. I found it kind of funny, that even though I directed all of my anger at him I was currently moving him into my bedroom. We continued this easy distraction for at least an hour, a decent amount of sweat collected behind my neck. I tugged my hair into a sloppy ponytail as I studied Dimitri’s figure. My blind rage had dulled to a miniscule amount of anger.  
I walked over to him reading the back cover of one of my few books and wrapped my arms around him from behind. Dimitri set the book down and twisted in my grip to face me. He returned the embrace, kissing the top of my head. Neither of us said anything, I couldn’t seem to swallow my pride and apologize, but he wasn’t about to admit fault either.  
“We should go back to Lissa’s,” he murmured. We had only managed to move half of Dimitri’s things over, but we needed to reorganize my things first to make room for the rest of his stuff. I tilted my head back to grimace at Dimitri, I hated leaving projects unfinished. Dimitri smoothed down my hair, tugging affectionately at my ponytail. “I don’t want to talk about Randall anymore. I’m sorry I brought it up,” he said in a small voice.  
I nodded firmly in agreement, “Deal.” I leaned up on the tips of my toes and pressed my lips to his, “I get it, don’t apologize. I should be apologizing. I came back from my little field trip with Jailbait and a million problems.”  
Dimitri tightened his arms around me, rubbing his nose against mine, “Problems we can deal with. We’ve been through worse, Roza.” My breath caught when he said my name barely above a whisper, yet it contained so much affection and love in that one word.  
I reached behind me and grabbed one of Dimitri’s hands, pulling myself out of his embrace. “Let’s go to Lissa’s now before the furniture starts begging me to move them.” Dimitri laughed, a genuine sound of humor coming from him. I smiled at the ground, feeling better knowing that I could still make him laugh after a day like today.  
We walked to Lissa’s hand in hand. I checked in on Lissa through the bond, she felt anxious and overwhelmed, but also excited. That last one pleased me, perhaps I haven’t ruined everyone’s life in this last week. Dimitri and I made it to her door at the same time as Nathan Ivashkov. He pretended not to see us walk up to him as he knocked on Lissa’s door.  
Dimitri and I stood behind Nathan to witness him deliver the news to Lissa. Christian opened the door, he glared at the three of us before stepping away from the door and returning with a blonde angel. Lissa shook Nathan’s hand in a professional manner, she had brushed her hair and fixed her makeup since the last time I saw her.  
Nathan fixed his tie and spoke in a stiff voice, “Vasilisa Dragomir, it is with deep joy that I inform you that you have been chosen by the people to become our new monarch.” The news didn’t surprise me in the least, but I still gripped Dimitri’s hand with excitement. Lissa smiled at Nathan. I admired her demeanor, she had only several hours to mentally prepare herself for being queen.  
“Thank you, Lord Ivashkov. I will prepare for the public announcement tonight and coronation in two nights.” Nathan coughed, “Yes, well, as the council seems impatient to get things going again… Your coronation has been moved to tonight.”


	15. The New Queen

Lissa’s POV

Being a princess without a council seat left me clueless when it came to my duties as a queen. For the last several days I’ve simply been doing what Princess Ava said I should do, or go where the council needed me. I felt like my main job was keeping a calm and collected face for the world to see. I could do that, I’ve been doing it for years now.  
Despite my eagerness to help the Moroi and create change for the better, a lot of people really hated me.  
The attacks started as soon as I was crowned queen. The Moroi against me tried to get rid of Jill, which would force me to step down from the throne. I sent her away after only a couple weeks, a small part of me was glad she left. The sight of her always brought up unwelcome emotions. Adrian left the court soon after to be with Jill and Eddie, I think he also left to get away from Rose and Dimitri.  
Once Jill was safely stashed away, the Moroi found a new way to attack me: Rose. Her political standing was faltering at best. Very few people on the council respected her as a princess, and the others were finding ways to undermine her.  
“Royal bloodlines, Princess Hathaway. How do you plan to bring forth the next generation of dhampir royalty? You’re dating a dhampir, so you clearly don’t plan on having children with him,” Prince Tarus rambled, his face growing more and more red as he spoke. “If you can’t provide your people with a future leader then you’re just wasting our time here, you might as well resign your position as princess and let the Hathaway name die out with dignity.”  
As Rose’s best friend, I wanted to fight Tarus on the subject, but as queen I simply sat there and observed as Rose chose her next words very carefully. If I came to her defense now it would only make her seem weak in Rufus’s eyes. She needed to handle this one on her own. I sent encouraging words through the bond, hoping I could somehow help her. She met my gaze for a second, offering me a small nod before meeting Tarus with a look that could turn a Strigoi to stone.  
“Prince Tarus, I appreciate your concern for the future of the Hathaway line, but as you may recall, the late queen crowned me princess. Why shouldn’t the next dhampir prince or princess be chosen by the dhampirs and then crowned by our lovely queen, Vasilisa? There is no need for me to have children.”  
Rufus slammed his hand on the curved table, standing up and jabbing a finger in Rose’s direction, “That’s absurd! It goes against tradition! Royalty comes from blood, Princess Hathaway. Your case may be special and unique but we will not be making the same exceptions in years to come. You have no brothers or sisters, no cousins. Discluding your parents, as the last of your line it is your duty to provide the dhampirs with a new leader for the next generation.”  
The other princes and princesses nodded in agreement, looking apprehensively at Rufus. Rufus rocked back onto the heels of his feet, seeming pleased with the point he just made. If it were anyone but Rose under attack, I would have to agree with Rufus. Yet, what he was insinuating would break Rose’s heart.  
Rose stood this time to meet his gaze across the table, looking incredulously at him, “You’re making me chose between being princess and my boyfriend?” Rose threw her hands up, she was quickly losing her princess composure. I peeked at Dimitri standing in a line with other guardians against the wall, his face didn’t show any emotion but I noticed that he couldn’t stop looking at Rufus with a deadly glint in his eyes.  
Keep calm, Rose. If you freak out you’ll be giving him what he wants, I sent through the bond. Rose closed her eyes for a few seconds. Both of us realized there was nothing to say to sway Rufus on his rampage. He was looking to ruin me or Rose, either of us would do. As long as he got rid of one of the two biggest dhampir supporters he would have more power once again.  
Rose took a seat, pursing her lips. Rufus sneered, “Well that settles it. I hope you can prove your dedication to you people, Princess Hathaway. I would hate to call a vote on your impeachment.”  
Rose jolted in her seat at the last word. Her eyes widened in fear, I saw her physically hold her words back. Tears threatened to fall from her watery eyes. I decided to end this before it got bloody, “Prince Tarus please take your seat. Princess Hathaway’s romantic life is none of your concern. May I point out that she is only eighteen, this is no time to make her think of children. The council needs to be focusing on other issues- like perhaps, oh I don’t know, Strigoi?”  
Rufus sat down, I watched with glee as his sneer turned to a frown. He nodded for me to continue with the meeting. “Great,” I clapped my hands together, “Now that that’s settled, the original plan for today’s meeting was to discuss new strategies for defense against Strigoi. Let’s get to that, shall we?”  
The princes and princesses all murmured in agreement, flipping to clean pages on legal pads to take notes. Don’t worry Rose, I won’t let Rufus touch your council seat. I turned to Rose, “Princess Hathaway, as you have the most experience with guardian training and even multiple Strigoi encounters, why don’t you start us off?”  
Rose beamed at me, all tears swallowed back, she noticed that I was making her seem appealing and necessary to the rest of the council. She gave me a curt nod and started rattling off brilliant ideas. As proud as I was to see her shining as a princess, I couldn’t help but fear Rufus’s words. He didn’t have much standing now since Rose is still young, but the council would soon expect her to provide a child.  
I suppressed a sigh, the two of us were stuck in the middle of a political battlefield. After all we’ve been through, I never thought one of our problems would be Rose and Dimitri’s infertility.  
“... preemptive strike for known Strigoi hideouts would be ideal, but we have to be careful about sending the guardians into these nests. It can be hard to tell how many Strigoi are living together, if we send too little guardians we could be sentencing them to death,” Rose explained with confidence. The council seemed enthralled with her ideas to eliminate Strigoi threats.  
They may not want her here for Moroi matters, but the council couldn’t help but look to Rose in all matters guardian and Strigoi. I smiled to myself, thinking that Rufus would have a hard time getting rid of Rose completely. As long as I kept the council talking about Strigoi, they would warm up to Rose. It was almost as if the council was under Rose’s compulsion, they nodded and scribbled furiously as an effect of her words.  
I needed to be a just queen, one that would bring honor to the Dragomir name, Jill needed to stay safe and hidden, and Rose needed to win over the council’s hearts. Easy, right?  
***************************  
“How was your day, Your Majesty?” Christian murmured into my hair. I shook my head against his shoulder, “Stop calling me that. My day was awful, Christian. Rufus is still throwing a fit that he didn’t become king. He attacked Rose today. He’s trying to get her to break up with Dimitri or step down from her council seat. It’s all bullshit.”  
Christian laughed at my exasperated tone. He rubbed soothing circles on my back, “I don’t think that’s legal. ‘You can’t be princess because I don’t like your boyfriend’? Don’t worry about that idiot.” I sighed, I could feel a migraine coming on, “Trust me, he’s not an idiot. The council might actually back him up if they believe Rose won’t have children.”  
Christian’s mocking attitude evaporated, “Oh.” The seriousness of the matter sank into him, the possibility that Rose could lose her council seat. Ever since Tasha’s arrest, Christian has harbored a grudge against Rose for tearing his family apart, but that didn’t mean he didn’t respect Rose’s position on the council. He knew what she meant to the dhampirs.  
I wanted to tell him how it nearly broke my heart to see Rose standing apart from Dimitri as the council left the courtroom. She wouldn’t let Dimitri touch her or try to comfort her in the courtroom, she refused to look weak or shaken in front of Rufus. Dimitri looked just as pained as Rose had, I knew how much he hated being the source of any conflict. Though I couldn’t say any of this to Christian, it would only make him upset.  
“So what are you going to do?” he inquired softly. The question shocked me coming from Christian, I thought he wouldn’t want anything to do with this. I pondered his words, I didn’t think there was anything I could do about this situation. I can’t help that Rose can’t have children with Dimitri. I can’t control the council’s opinion about Rose having her own children.  
Come to think of it, Rufus probably wanted to hook Rose up with one of his nephews so that he could influence the next generation of dhampir royalty.  
I took in a deep breath and let it out in a sigh, “I don’t know. Rufus might be able to go somewhere with this, but not anytime soon. The council won’t be asking for children until Rose is at least in her twenties. The problem is that Rose would totally have kids, I think, just as long as the kids are Dimitri’s.”  
Christian continued to hold me in his warm embrace, the muscles in his arms tensed. “I’m sure Dimitri would love that,” he remarked coolly. It didn’t take much for me to figure he was thinking of Tasha’s offer Dimitri, a million years ago it seemed. I chose not to respond to his remark, I didn’t want to fight with Christian over Rose and Dimitri and Tasha.  
After several moments of standing there in comfortable silence, Christian pulled back to look me in the eyes, “Are you still mad at Rose for making you queen?” The question was earnest enough, but there was a double meaning to his words. “No, Christian. I’m not. She really did me a huge favor. As much as the council gives me headaches constantly, I finally have some power. The Dragomirs aren’t the invisible family anymore. And Rose was right, there are a lot of terrible things planned for the dhampirs that she wouldn’t have been able to stop without my help.”  
I narrowed my eyes at Christian’s doubtful look. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” I stated as I wiggled out of Christian’s embrace. Anger flooded through me, did Christian really expect me to gang up on Rose with him?  
Christian shrugged nonchalantly, “Whatever.” He walked over to the door, grabbing his jacket. I let my lips form into a pout, “Are you really leaving?” I did my best to give off a sad doe-eyed look, hopefully Christian would stay with me and keep me in a somewhat good mood.  
He twisted the doorknob, “I’m going to visit Tasha.” He extended his arm out in mock extravagance, “You’re welcome to come with me, Your Majesty.” He blinked, waiting for my response. I bit my lip, wanting so desperately to cling to Christian and never let him go. Christian raised his eyebrows, becoming impatient.  
“I can’t. If the council found out-” I was cut off by the door slamming loudly, Christian was gone.  
********************************************  
“Rose! Please open the door!” I shouted in the empty hallway, my fist aching from knocking so hard. Two of my guards stood behind me, acting as shadows. I heard thumps from inside the suite and I heard Rose cry out the way she does in battle followed by more thumps. I shot a panicked look to my guards, silently begging them to open the door.  
One of the guards, Kristen, stepped forward and knocked again, harder than I had. The shouts died down, Kristen shot me a grin that said thank God I don’t have to break down the door. Moments later the door opened, Rose stood there wearing sweats and a tank top with her hair in a sloppy ponytail.  
She grinned, “Oh hey, Lissa. Dimitri and I were just fighting.” She beckoned us in, high-fiving the guards as they passed. “Yeah I could hear it through the walls. Out of the honeymoon stage and ready to kill him already?” I joked. Dimitri stood in the middle of the living room, chugging a bottle of water. All of the furniture had been pushed aside to make an empty space in the middle of the room.  
“I just wanted to make sure I could still kick his ass,” Rose said, winking at Dimitri. I smiled at the couple, at least they had a healthy way of venting off steam, whereas Christian and I slam doors in each other’s faces. I sat down on the couch pushed up against the wall and signaled for Kristen and Logan to join me. “Well don’t let us interrupt. I’ve never seen you two go at it,” I said.  
Rose did a double take and scrutinized me, a look I had come to know well over the years. She was checking my emotions through the bond. She must have found what she was looking for because she raised her eyebrows, “Want to talk about it?”  
I gave her a tight smile, “Not right now. I need a distraction.” I gestured to Rose and Dimitri. The thought of seeing the two most talented dhampirs I know fight excited me. This would be better than when I saw Rose do a kegstand at a frat party. The awful tasting beer eventually came back up within the hour, making Rose vow to never drink again. A vow which she broke the next week during a string of frat parties and keggers all on the campus street we lived on while away from the academy.  
Rose and Dimitri stood at opposite corners of the room, both crouching slightly and staring each other down. There was a playful look on Dimitri’s face I had never seen before, Rose’s lips pulled up into a seductive smile. “You’re going down, comrade,” she threatened. My guards sat forward in their seats with their mouths hanging open in awe.  
Rose tilted her head to the side, “Lissa, count us down from five, will you?” She never broke eye contact with Dimitri. I realized that this wasn’t just a workout for them, it was a game. Dimitri had Rose fixed with a determined look. She matched his gaze with a challenge in her eyes. They both seemed dangerous and beautiful.  
“Five!” I shouted with childlike joy. Rose’s fingers twitched.  
“Four!” Dimitri licked his lips.  
“Three!” Rose rolled her neck, I heard a crack.  
“Two!” Dimitri’s shoulders hunched forward.  
“One!” I threw one arm in the air, pretending I was holding a flag. Rose charged first, moving gracefully yet always emitting lethality. Dimitri ducked to the side just before she could crash into him. With her speed, she should have toppled into the wall without Dimitri in front of her, but her arm snaked out and gripped Dimitri. She used his body to change her momentum and propel herself sideways.  
Rose twisted in the air and landed on Dimitri’s back. Dimitri gripped her arms and flung her forward, making her fly over his head. I almost yelled out in fear that she would hit the ceiling, but luckily that didn’t happen. Maybe it wasn’t luck, maybe they were just that good.   
Rose tried to curl up so she could land on her feet, but Dimitri used his arms to force her down faster than gravity would have done the job. She landed on her back with a dull thud, thanks to the thick carpets.That kind of blow would have knocked the wind out of me, but it didn’t seem to faze her. She got right back up and aimed a punch at Dimitri’s sternum, which he successfully blocked.  
My guards cheered for both Rose and Dimitri, shouting out at the awesome moves the couple were pulling off. I felt for a fleeting moment as if the bond was reversed. Watching Rose battle it out with Dimitri gave me a sort of high, I lost track of my worries for the present time. Of course, these were just my own feelings. My high was nothing compared to what Rose must be feeling right now. I could see the euphoria in her aura as she jumped, crouched and twisted her body.  
I saw both Dimitri and Rose holding blunt ended wooden sticks- practice stakes. I had no idea where they came from, I didn’t notice the two holding them earlier. My guards and I watched as the couple went back and forth throwing punches and blocking attacks. It seemed almost routine, they knew each others moves so well and neither were going for the kill. Rose broke out of the pattern they had created and kicked out Dimitri’s legs from beneath him.  
Before Dimitri could stand up Rose was on top of him, her practice stake went in for the blow. Dimitri rolled sideways just before the stake could touch him, causing Rose to fall over. Dimitri roughly grabbed one of Rose’s arms and yanked her up. He seemed to get more aggressive now, but I could tell from Rose’s grin that Dimitri was only being competitive. He wouldn’t really hurt her, but the way he was handling her would have most certainly hurt me, I could help but flinch when he pushed her around.  
Rose didn’t seem to mind being pushed around in this setting, she gladly took all that he could offer- neither of them were holding back now. I felt my phone vibrating in my back pocket which I simply ignored. Whoever it was would have to wait for the battle to be over.  
Rose grunted more often as she tried to corner Dimitri. He surprised everyone by surging forward just as Rose struck her arm out. He caught the stake mid thrust and wrapped his hand around it, yanking Rose toward him. Dimitri wrapped him arms around Rose, trapping her in what seemed like a lover’s embrace.  
Rose wasn’t fooled, she pushed and shoved to no avail. Dimitri had an iron grip around her waist. He spun her around so that she was facing the wall and pushed her up against it, using his body to pin her. His arm struck out and his stake connected with Rose’s chest. Rose’s shoulders sagged in defeat, my guards started cheering for Dimitri.  
Dimitri leaned his head down and kissed Rose. “Got you, Roza,” he whispered. I don’t think he meant for us to hear. Roza was not something I had heard before, but I liked the way he said her name so affectionately. After Dimitri broke the kiss and let Rose go she kept her eyes closed for a few moments afterward. When she opened her eyes there was a dangerous glint dancing in her brown irises. “Again,” she panted.   
At the same time there was a knock on the suite’s door. The door vibrated with the force of the person’s fist continually hitting the door. “Lissa! Are you in there? Rose, open up! It’s urgent,” Christian screamed from the other side of the door. I mentally groaned, of course Christian shows up just as I’m feeling my headache start to disappear.  
Logan shot up from his seat and opened the door to let my frantic boyfriend in. Christian ran over to me and took me in his arms, “Thank God you’re here. I tried calling you!” He shot me an accusing look. Christian searched the room until he caught sight of Rose, he seemed to relax a little when he saw her.  
I squeezed Christian’s arm, “What’s wrong?” I remembered him slamming the door on me no less than an hour ago. He didn’t look like he was here to apologize and make amends. Christian let out a large puff of air and looked up at the ceiling. I saw his lips moving and leaned in to hear what he was saying, “I’m so sorry, so so sorry. You were right, Rose.”  
No one else heard what he had just said, leaving them looking confused and worried. I squeezed his arm tighter, forcing him to draw his attention to me. “Christian, tell me what’s going on. Is Tasha okay?” I asked tentatively, knowing the treacherous territory I was entering by mentioning her name.  
Christian shook his head frantically. He looked at Rose with regret and fear in his eyes, “Rose, Tasha’s gone. She broke out of the jail cell and no one can find her.”


	16. Warrior Princess

Rose’s POV

Dimitri paced the floor of the suite, I saw the panic slowly settle in as the gravity of our situation became more apparent. Hans had called us no more than two minutes after Christian blurted out the news of Tasha’s disappearance and told Dimitri to keep me in complete lockdown in my suite. Ethan Moore was still in his cell, apparently Tasha didn’t care enough to break him out. More guards were currently on their way for me, Lissa was swept away by her guards. Christian, of course, left with her.  
“Don’t worry, Roza. It’s going to be okay,” Dimitri muttered, still pacing. I laughed despite the situation, “I’m not the one shaking, comrade.” Dimitri stopped his pacing, “They’re going to find her. She’s going to be executed on the spot for trying to escape.” He shook his head violently and clenched his fists. “How could she be so stupid? She just assured her own death!”  
I saw it then, just how much Dimitri still loved her. Dimitri swore Tasha off for hurting me, but he couldn’t stop himself from caring. Even after everything she’s done… I moved in front of Dimitri, my hands unclenched his fists and I wound my fingers through his. I wish it wasn’t this way. I wish he hated her with everything he had, it would be easier for both of us that way.  
I gave a heavy sigh and wrapped his arms around me, resting my head on his chest. Dimitri tightened his hold on me, I tilted my head up to gaze at him. “Let’s talk about something else. Distract me,” I murmured. Dimitri rubbed soothing circles in my back, “What do you want to talk about?”  
I pondered this for a moment. I certainly didn’t want to talk about Rufus or anything having to do with my princess duties. “Uh. Why haven’t we seen your family in a while? Have they been hiding from us?” I joked. Dimitri raised one eyebrow, “They want to see us, but you’ve been too busy with Lissa settling in as queen. They-”  
His words were cut off by the sound of the lock on the suite’s door sliding out of place. Dimitri turned to the door, pushing me behind him. My heart was pounding in my chest as the handle twisted and the door was pushed open. Dimitri stepped forward, his stake somehow suddenly in his grip.  
My dad raised his arms, “Woah, there. Expecting company much?” My mom walked in behind Abe and made a beeline for me, checking me for any physical damage. Word really does spread fast around here. I breathed a sigh of relief, “How did you get in here, Abe?”  
Abe gave me a devilish grin, “I may have made a copy of your key.” He flicked his gaze to Dimitri, “Are you going to put the stake down, boy?” I narrowed my eyes at Abe for the “boy” comment, but Dimitri lowered the stake obligingly. “What are you doing here?” I demanded.  
“We’re here to keep you company, of course. Aren’t you going to offer us something to drink? You’re not being a very good host, Rosemarie,” Abe scolded. I scoffed, “You really want to play tea party right now?”  
Abe sat on the couch, crossing his legs and seeming much more comfortable than he should be right now. I narrowed my eyes at him for ruining the small amount of alone time Dimitri and I had before my extra guards would show up. Dimitri checked and doubled checked the lock on the door. Just as he turned away from the door there was a loud pounding on the thick wood.  
I mentally groaned, was I ever going to get a break? Dimitri checked the peephole and opened the door to let in a flock of frantic Russian women. They all passed Dimitri dismissively before swarming around me and demanding to know why the court was spreading rumors that I was in danger. Vika gripped my wrist hard enough to make me wince.  
A deep male voice commanded my attention, “Does this have anything to do with what Prince Tarus said to you?” I hadn’t noticed that Mark and Oksana came in with the Belikov women. I shook my head, “No, but I’m not surprised you heard about that, too.” I let out an exasperated sigh, “Listen, I appreciate your concern, but there’s nothing to be worried about.”  
Dimitri’s sisters gave me a disapproving look that told me I wasn’t going to get rid of them. Vika leaned in to whisper, “What has Tarus said? No one will tell me anything.” I looked over to Dimitri, still standing by the door. He was wearing his infamous impassive face. The other sisters, and Dimitri’s mother must already know, and they didn’t want to upset Vika.  
I tugged her over to the corner of the room, the rest of our unexpected guests turned to Dimitri and my parents for answers. “It’s nothing, really,” I waved my hand in a dismissive gesture. “Just politics. Rufus is trying to attack me and make me look bad. Don’t worry, no one’s going to listen to him,” I swallowed, my saliva tasting like bile from the lie.  
Vika, who was too perceptive for her own good, gave me a hard look. “I think, whatever he said, people are already listening. Even the dhampirs have been whispering your name all day.” I tried not to wince at that. I could handle Tasha escaping prison, I could handle physical danger. I don’t think I could handle letting my people down, my pride wouldn’t allow for it.  
My shoulders sagged, I looked over at my ever growing family, they all wore similar looks of concern as Dimitri spoke. Lissa could never hear what I was about to say, because it would put her in a conflicting position as the queen and my best friend. I could never tell Dimitri because it would cause him too much pain. I jerked my chin to the bedroom, Vika followed me.  
Once the door was closed and locked I nearly crumpled to the floor with tears. “I’m so scared, Vika. Rufus convinced them that I need to have a child. I don’t know what to do,” I shuddered. “Oh my God,” Vika whispered in a horrified voice. Viktoria wrapped her arm around me in a half embrace and pushed gently until I knelt on the floor. She pulled me in close so that she bore most of my weight. Being this close to another person, being comforted like this, I couldn’t hold back my tears anymore.  
Viktoria stayed silent, keeping me in her warm embrace while the sobs racked through me. Every emotion I had bottled up came pouring out of me, threatening to choke the air out of me. I cried for everything that’s gone wrong since I graduated; Dimitri’s unrequited love, Tasha’s betrayal, Rufus’s threat to my council seat. I also cried for Randall, and all of the pain he’s caused me, all of the pain I could never show Dimitri. I cried for the nightmares, the memories I refuse to relive yet can’t escape from.  
I don’t know how long it was before my body stopped shaking from the violent sobs, but the quiet now enveloped us. Vika kissed my hair, squeezing my arm. “What are you going to do about it?” Her words drew me away from thoughts of the past. It wasn’t a threat, she wasn’t being cruel. She was making me face my demons. “I can’t have children, Vika. I can’t.”  
“Can’t? Or won’t?” I twisted in Vika’s grip to look at the door behind us, where Oksana stood, my bedroom door wide open. “I thought I locked the door,” I muttered as I swiped the tears from my face. Oksana smiled faintly before closing the door to block out any prying ears. Her tall, graceful form towered over me as she extended a hand. I took it, Vika rising with me. “It seems you have a problem on your mind,” Oksana murmured softly.  
I snorted, “That’s an understatement.”  
“It seems the last time I shared a secret with you, you solved your problem.”  
I raised my eyebrows, recalled when she told me the rumor about returning a Strigoi to their original form. “Yes, I did. Got any more tricks up your sleeve by chance?”  
Oksana pursed her lips, “Actually, yes. I’m not sure I can tell you, though.”  
Vika scoffed, “You have to! How can you not help her?”  
Oksana turned her gaze to the window, the sun would rise soon. She became pensive for a while, escaping into her own mind. After what seemed like forever, she took a deep breath.  
“What I know... it would help you and Dimitri. But it would cause more problems, for the dhampirs and for those with Spirit magic.”  
I felt my blood run cold. I absolutely hated ultimatums, and this choice could very well be the end of me.  
“Tell me.”  
She did.  
**********************  
Dimitri’s POV

I heard the sobs through the walls and my words fell short. A quick scan of the room told me that Rose and Vika had locked themselves in the bedroom. I fell silent, my feet rooted in place as I listened to Roza crying. Nobody made a move to go to the girls. Anguish and self-loathing racked through me, go to her you fool. I couldn’t make my feet move.  
She’s crying because of you, you idiot. I could never give her the things she needed, the things she deserved. There was a pounding in my ears, so loud that I barely heard Roza crying anymore. I stood there, staring at the bedroom door, listening to the blood rush in my head.  
Finally, Oksana stood and marched to the door. She raised her hand to knock, but decided to try the handle instead. She eased the door open just in time for Vika’s voice to carry into the living room, “What are you going to do about it?” There was something in Vika’s voice, maybe it was encouragement. It sounded a lot like hope.  
“I can’t have children, Vika. I can’t.” There was no hope in Rose’s voice. I felt as though I had been slapped by Rose’s words. I can’t give her the things she deserves. I took a step forward to go to my Roza but Oksana held up a hand to stop me. She faced the bedroom with her outstretched hand now on her hip, “Cant? Or won’t?”  
“I thought I locked the door,” Rose said, a little shock lacing her voice. She sounded too tired to care much. Oksana entered the room and closed the door, this time I heard the pop of the lock being set in place.  
I felt a hand rest on my arm, “Dimka, it’s going to be okay. She’s just letting that Tarus asshole get to her.” I turned to face Karolina, my only sibling older than me. She gave me a warm smile, “You two have nothing to be crying about. Oksana will knock some sense into her, I’m sure,” she shook her head with a mischievous grin, “We probably should have kept Vika away from Rose, though. Our sister can be so dramatic, if Rose is crying it’s only because Vika said the wrong thing.”  
I took no comfort in Karolina’s empty words. I didn’t care that she made jokes at Vika’s expense to make me feel better. Rose didn’t cry without a good reason. Rose didn’t even cry when she told me what my father had done to her, though I think that’s because she was only giving me half truths.  
“Rose is smart, she’ll figure out how to get Tarus off her back,” Abe declared. I heard his unspoken promise, one that ended in spilled blood if Tarus didn’t leave Rose alone. Disturbingly, I took more comfort in Abe’s words than my sister’s.  
The bedroom door swung open and Vika emerged. She slammed the door behind her and huffed as she stomped over to us. “What happened?” Janine asked, the first words she’s spoken all night.  
Vika crossed her arms, “Oksana kicked me out! She said she needed to tell Rose something in private.” She rolled her eyes and locked her gaze with mine, “Congratulations. It sounds like you’re going to be a father.”  
If I had water in my mouth I would have spit it out. “What?” Everyone said as a chorus, all of us except for Mark, who looked smug. Vika shrugged, “It sounded like Oksana is conspiring to get Rose knocked up with your baby, somehow. That’s all I got before she kicked me out.”  
I frantically look to the bedroom door, waiting for Rose to appear and deny it all. “Viktoria!” My mother scolded, probably for the knocked up comment. I dared glance at Rose’s parents, Janine had turned a deep shade of purple. Abe looked far too calm, a murderous glint in his eye as he studied me.  
Sonja started laughing, “That’s not possible, Vika. Stop making things up.” I wasn’t in the mood to see my sisters fight, but I so desperately needed to hear Vika confirm it… or deny it. I didn’t even know what I needed, what I wanted. You know exactly what you want, I thought.  
But how could I want something that’s impossible? How could I want something for Rose that she doesn’t want?  
*************************************  
When thirty minutes had passed and the extra guards still hadn’t showed, I called Hans and told him to send people who knew how to do their job. No word on Tasha’s whereabouts. I pinched the bridge of my nose, Tasha’s escape seemed like such an irrelevant irk now. So much was happening, I couldn’t wrap my head around any more new, any more complications.  
Vika vehemently denied lying, claiming that Oksana had a plan for me and Rose to conceive a baby together. Mark kept that secretive smile on his face the whole time. I wanted to punch him.  
More than anything I wanted to break down the bedroom door and take Roza away. I don’t care how far we would have to go, but this place wasn’t good for her anymore. She had enemies here, enemies I couldn’t simply cut down.  
My mother appeared from the kitchen with a steaming mug of hot chocolate and extended the mug to me. I gave her my weak attempt at a smile, “Thanks, mamma.” I didn’t even get to take a sip before there was three sharp knocks on the door.  
I let in two guards, Mikhail and an older guard named Brian. Mikhail’s face was drained of all color, “Have you heard from Ellie and Fred?” I shook my head. Ellie and Fred were the first two guards assigned to protect Rose tonight, who never showed up for their post. Mikhail and Brian shared a look that made the hair on my neck raise. “What’s going on?” I demanded.  
Eddie took a deep breath, “Where’s Rose?” Just then the bedroom door opened. “Here,” Rose announced, her voice drained of emotion. Oksana stood with a comforting hand on the princess's shoulder. Eddie relaxed a little with Rose in sight, “A lot’s happened. No word on Tasha. But first, the council is meeting right now without you or the queen. They’re taking advantage of the fact that you’re in lockdown.”  
Rose woke up from the stupor Oksana put her in, “What!” She marched forward and gripped my hand tightly, “Come on. We’re going to the meeting.” She pulled me to the door, giving me a death glare when I resisted, “Rose, we have to keep you in the suite.”  
Rose’s eyes almost doubled in size, “I’m so fucking sick of this! I AM A GUARDIAN. I’m done playing the helpless princess who can’t get any dirt on her hands.” I could see the fury in her eyes. After everything that’s happened, Rose is finally losing control. “If we see Tasha I will rip her throat out myself. I do not need to hide in this suite, what I need to do is get to that meeting before any more damage is done.”  
She let go of my hand and stomped out the door, leaving the dumbfounded guardians racing after her. My own blood was boiling from having Rose yell at me. She had to know that I never doubted her strength, not once. I knew that she could take down her enemies and dance in their ashes, but I would never stand down from a chance to protect her.  
As I left the suite I heard Sonja whisper, “Oksana, what the hell did you say to Rose?”  
That was an issue for another time.  
************************  
Rose sauntered into the council room, still wearing her tanktop and sweats. She cut off Rufus mid sentence, “So kind of you to call for this meeting so I could get out of my suite, I was feeling a little cramped.” She fixed Rufus with a stare so feral and dangerous it would sent a Strigoi running. I briefly pondered how much Spirit induced darkness was influencing her actions tonight. Rufus blanched, clearly not expecting Rose to make an appearance.  
Rose looked like an avenging angel standing before the council, with the three stoic bodyguards to dole out any punishment she saw fit flanking her. “I would like to address the issue concerning my having children. There will be a dhampir heir to the throne. Though, I am only eighteen, so don’t expect this heir anytime soon.”  
Rose stepped up to the table and flattened her palms on the wood. Rufus’ guard tensed. “If you ever step into my personal life again, I will make your life a living hell. Don’t for one second think I’m having kids to appease you. You will never have that kind of power over me.” A malevolent grin spread across her face and she leaned in to whisper to Rufus. Whatever she said to him made the blood rush out of his face.  
Rose seemed pleased by this and stepped away. She terrified me, and I was utterly in awe.  
“Just know who has the upper hand here, Tarus. Stay away from me, stay away from Dimitri, and stay away from my queen.”  
She bowed to the council and turned on her heel, leaving the room gawking at the warrior princess.  
I caught up to her on the stairs of the courthouse. “Rose, what did you say to Rufus?” All of her bravado was gone, she flicked her eyes to Mikhail and Brian behind me. “Rufus let Tasha out. He needed me locked up so that he could have this meeting.” She shrugged, “It was just a guess, but when I told him what I knew, his expression told me I guessed right.”  
I turned back to the courthouse, the vision blurring with rage. I didn’t take two steps before Rose gripped my arm, “No Dimitri.” I kept resisting but she wouldn’t let go. How could she let Rufus get away with this?  
She stepped in front of me and cupped my face in her hands, “Dimitri I have the upper hand this way. Rufus won’t touch me now that I know this. If we turn him in now it will cause more problems than it will solve. I’m his political enemy, I can’t be the one to turn him in or there will be doubt. The Moroi have to convict him themselves.”  
I thought she was out of control in that courtroom, but I didn’t realize how much self control she must have had to not slam Rufus’s head onto the table.  
“Dimitri we have to let this go. Tasha can’t hurt me and now Rufus can’t either. Let’s go.”  
I was still breathing heavy, but I could see normally again. This solved everything and nothing at the same time. And what did Rose mean about a dhampir heir?  
Rose’s hands were still on my face, her eyes big and pleading. I brought my hands up to hers, holding them in place. I would do anything to protect her, but she’s doing a damn good job all by herself. My Roza, my princess.  
What have we gotten ourselves into?


	17. Thanksgiving

Rose’s POV

“Don’t you guys have jobs to get back to in Russia?” I asked. Don’t get me wrong, I love having Dimitri’s family with us, but they’ve been sharing a two bedroom apartment with us for the last three months, and I wanted some… privacy. If you know what I mean. Viktoria shook her head with a small smile, “Yeah, but we can just live off of you.”  
It was my turn to shake my head, “No way. I have to support all the dhampirs; you get no special treatment.” Ever since I almost blew up in the courtroom two and a half months ago, the council meetings have been getting harder and more awkward. Not to mention I had more responsibility than ever. The dhampirs have been making a lot of noise to have better treatment ever since I became princess, so my hands have been full 24/7.  
“At least my mom cooks for you. I don’t think you’d survive off of Dimitri’s sandwiches for much longer,” Sonja piped in. We glanced over at Dimitri reading on the couch and the three of us fell into a fit of giggles. Dimitri tore his gaze from the book, seeming to realize that we were laughing at him, which made us laugh harder. He snapped the book shut, I could tell he was forcing himself not to smile as he went into the kitchen to get away from us.  
Now Viktoria was snorting. I tried to remember what was so funny, but it didn’t really matter. It just felt good to laugh this hard, so I gripped Sonja’s arm and continued to laugh. Suddenly, for a moment, it didn’t matter that the Belikov’s were taking up all of my personal space, or that Tasha is missing, or that I have no idea what I’m doing with my duty as princess. I was here with my family, isn’t that what Thanksgiving is all about?  
*******************  
The morning of Thanksgiving I woke up to the smell of Olena’s cooking, which is possibly the best way to wake up. Especially if I’m waking up next to Dimitri. “Good morning, beautiful,” he whispered and kissed my forehead. I snuggled close into his arms, “There you go with the morning crap again. Let me remind you, the sun went down hours ago.” Being a half-vampire really sucked (haha) in the winter months, since I barely saw the sun at all.  
Dimitri shrugged, “I’ll still say it to you every day when we wake up. Good morning.” And he kissed my forehead again, pulling me closer to him. His body provided warmth against the drafty air in the room, I almost didn’t want to get out of bed, but Olena’s food was too enticing.  
It turns out that I should have stayed in bed. Olena waved a ladle at me, “Don’t touch the food! It’s for dinner tonight.” I tried to hide a pout. I told myself I wouldn’t grow accustomed to luxury, but Olena made breakfast every day. I settled for a bowl of cereal, though my stomach yearned for the aromas coming from the oven.  
“So who did you invite to have dinner with us?” Olena asked. I paused with my spoon halfway to my mouth, “What?”  
Olena gave me a look of disbelief, “You didn’t invite people?”  
“Uh. Not exactly.” How was I supposed to know I was hosting Thanksgiving? “I’ll ask my parents. Lissa will probably want to come and eat your food too, so Christian will be here. Oh, I can ask Sonya and Mikhail, and Maia and her dad, and I can invite Meredith and some other gua-”  
“Okay, okay. Don’t name everyone you know, just go call them right now.” She took my half eaten bowl of cereal and pushed me out of the kitchen. As I made my way to the office phone I heard her shout from the kitchen, “Karolina, wake up your sisters and make them start cleaning the house! There’s going to be a party!”  
I started calling people, and surprisingly most of them didn’t have better plans than to come eat food in my suite. Going out into the living room, my suite seemed all too small for the amount of people who were going to be here tonight. “How many?” Olena asked. I tallied numbers in my head, “Twenty-one, including us.” She nodded and disappeared into the kitchen. Sonja and Karolina were rushing around the living room, picking up toddlers clothes and dishes left over from last night.  
“You need to go buy a tree,” Viktoria nudged me.  
I raised my eyebrows, “I think you’re confused. Today’s Thanksgiving. Which I’m surprised you guys are celebrating anyway.” Viktoria shrugged, “Mamma likes to celebrate holidays all around the world, not just the Russian ones. Every year after we finish eating dinner on Thanksgiving, we stay up and decorate the Christmas tree. Mamma will have a heart attack if she finds out you don’t have a tree to put up.”  
I put my arms up in defense, “Where am I supposed to get a tree at court?” Viktoria leaned in with a mischievous glint in her eyes, “You’re not. There’s a tree farm about thirty miles away, though. I checked last night. And I already convinced Dimitri to take us.”  
Dimitri came out of the bedroom wearing a thick sweater, and carrying my winter coat, “Ready to go?” he asked. I stared at him in amazement, “Dimitri Belikov, how many rules are you breaking to get me out of court today?” Security is still tight around me. Dimitri took in a deep breath, “Many, but I don’t want to face my mother’s wrath if there’s no tree. Let’s go before she notices we have nothing in storage.”  
I bit my lip, but it did nothing to hide my huge smile as Dimitri held out my coat. Sonja gave us a small wave on our way out, “Have fun!”  
The guards at the gate seemed to be in on this little rendezvous, Dimitri must have spoken to them last night. “Be careful guys,” one of them said as he pounded his hand twice on the SUV.  
The car ride was fun, simply because Viktoria was on my side for the music choices. “Sorry, comrade. Majority wins,” I said gleefully as I pressed the seek button to find a pop station. Dimitri pursed his lips but didn’t fight it.  
I stared out the window and watched the blurry trees feathered in snow go by. “I hate this time of year, everything is slush, there’s no real snow yet,” Vika whined from the backseat.  
An unfamiliar feeling of peace settled over me, thirty miles didn’t seem long enough. I wanted this car ride to last a lifetime. For the next hour I could just pretend that I wasn’t a princess, that I was just Rose. And being just Rose, with my oh so sexy Dimitri, was the best Thanksgiving I could ask for. Vika was cool, too.  
All too soon, Dimitri pulled into the parking lot of the tree farm. All I could see in front of me was towering evergreens of white. Dimitri walked over to a miserable looking kiosk where a bearded man took his money. I gleefully skipped over to Dimitri and grabbed his hands, “It’s like we’re a good old boring human couple! Today’s going to be great.” Dimitri chuckled and removed his hand from mine so that he could wrap an arm around me.  
We walked into the farm, Viktoria trailing behind us. I rested my head on Dimitri’s shoulder as we walked forward. I felt like the scene before us belonged on a Christmas card. Even though it was Thanksgiving, I had carols playing in my head. We kept a slow pace, my eyes lazily gazing down the rows of trees. They all looked the same to me, but it was nice to see all the trees surrounding us like a wall of festivity.  
“See anything you like?” Dimitri asked. I tilted my head up and grinned at him, “Yeah, I think I’ll take the tall Russian one home with me.” Dimitri rolled his eyes, “Even if you didn’t, I’d follow you. Which tree do you want?”  
I shrugged, “Doesn’t matter. They’re all beautiful. Will any of these even fit in the suite?” Some of these trees had to be nearly twice as tall as Dimitri. Suddenly, there was a high pitched squeal behind us, we both turned to see Viktoria jumping and pointing. “This one! It’s perfect! Dimka get this one!” We walked back over to Viktoria and examined the tree.  
“I don’t see how this one is any different than the other ones,” I stated. Viktoria huffed, “Are you kidding me? Look how this one-”  
“Vika it’s fine. Is this one okay, Rose?” Dimitri asked. I shrugged, “Yeah, any one of these would be okay with me.” Viktoria shook her head angrily at me. Dimitri leaned in and whispered, “Just let it go, my sisters are weird like that.” Then he turned and walked away.  
I raised my eyebrows at his retreating figure. “I’m surprised he’s leaving me alone,” I muttered. Viktoria giggled, all anger forgotten, “It’s because he wants me to talk to you. He asked me to see how you feel about marriage. He told me to keep it casual and not mention that he had anything to do with this.” I froze, caught off guard by the sudden change in topic. “Well, I can see how good you are at keeping secrets.”  
Viktoria shrugged, “You would have put it together anyway. So? What about it? You and my brother, wouldn’t it be perfect!” Viktoria practically squealed again, like I was some gorgeous tree. “Uh, Vika, I don’t really know how ‘perfect’ that would be. Marriage is… Big. Too big.” Wow. Really sophisticated, Rose. I felt annoyed with myself for my lack of words. Of course I’d thought about it, in my daydreams, but I couldn’t explain how I felt about it to someone else.  
Viktoria looked at me as if I’d slapped her, “So, what? You don’t want to marry him? Do you not love him enough?” Her tone was growing colder than the air outside. Where was Dimitri? I put my hands up in a defensive gesture. “I’m not saying that! I love Dimitri more than anything, but… I just…” Vika took a step forward, she jabbed a finger at me. I cut her off before she could yell at me, “Oh for crying out loud,” I threw my hands up in annoyance, “I’m eighteen, Vika! I’m only eighteen years old. Can’t this wait until I’m twenty, at the least? First the council wants me to have pop babies out, and now you want to strut me down an aisle! Give me a break.”  
Vika stared at me with her mouth hanging open. I stared back, my chest heaving up and down in frustration. Where the hell was Dimitri? Hopefully he hadn’t heard my rant. “Fair enough,” Viktoria whispered. “I guess I didn’t really consider how you would feel about this, other than being hopelessly in love with my brother.”  
I let out a sigh of relief, “I do love him, hopelessly. I can’t even tell you the things I’ve done just to be with him. It all leads back to him for me. I can’t see myself with anyone else. I want to have a future with him, but I don’t need a ring on my finger just yet.”  
Viktoria bit her lip and contemplated this. Then her face bloomed into a beautiful grin, “So, I’ll tell Dimitri he’s allowed to propose on your twenty-first birthday and no sooner.” The two of us started giggling, and I could feel my face warm at the thought. “I’m engaged to be engaged,” I murmured. Viktoria seemed to think this was incredibly funny and broke into full out laughter.  
I smelled his aftershave before I saw him. “What’s so funny?” Dimitri asked, glancing between the two of us, an axe in his left hand. “Nothing,” I said too quickly, and Dimitri raised an eyebrow. “How come I didn’t hear you walking up to us? Were you spying from the trees?” I joked, a hand on my hip. Dimitri gave me a small smile, “You wouldn’t get it; it’s a guardian thing.”  
“Hey!” I yelled and playfully punched his arm. “Make yourself useful and chop the tree down,” I demanded before he could make more jokes at my expense.  
******************  
It seems that when you invite the queen to dinner, you end up inviting twelve or so hungry guardians, too. Luckily, Olena cooked enough food for fifty people. I shuddered to think of the grocery bill I had to pay for this. Most of us sat at the long banquet style table, but there were more people than seats, so a lot of people ate standing up and walking around the suite.  
The entire apartment was alive with human noise and the smell of pumpkin pies mixed with cooked ham. The table was never still, there was always a dish being passed or a knife scraping a plate. Someone, probably one of the guards, had found the alcohol and broken out the stash. Considering the fact that Dimitri didn’t drink much, and I was underage, there wasn’t a lot of alcohol to go around. Or, there shouldn’t have been.  
There were at least seven bottles of wine and different types of vodka on my counter. My suite had become a “bring your own booze” party. I couldn’t find it in myself to be flustered or angry. Instead, I poured myself a drink (when my mom wasn’t looking) and joined in the festivities.  
I felt lighter, being with everyone tonight. It felt good to see them all smiling and laughing. It felt good to kiss Dimitri in front of all of them. Since Eddie, Jill and Adrian were in California, I found myself missing them. A period of silence went by when everyone at the table was stuffing their faces, and this gave me time to get lost in thoughts. There were a lot of people who should have been at the table with us tonight.  
As dinner went on and Olena served desserts, the talk became less forced and there was a lot more laughing. Half of my guests were drinking heavily at this point, and Dimitri was throwing suspicious looks at my glass.  
“I’m telling you! She can sing!” Lissa proclaimed. Maia and Christian made noises of disagreement. “No, it’s true. I caught her singing in the communal showers back at St. Vlads. She got really awkward about it later. But you sound amazing, Rose.” I snapped my head toward Meredith. I hadn’t realized they were talking about me.  
“Prove it,” Christian said with an evil grin. Now the whole table and the others standing in the room were paying close attention. I shook my head, “No, you can go on with your lives believing I sound like a dying whale when I sing.” They made sounds of protest, urging me to sing something.  
I started to panick. I had never been uncomfortable being in front of people like this, but thinking that they would hear me sing… I wanted to crawl under a rock. I was pretty sure I hated Christian now. “Just give her something strong to drink. She still sounds good drunk, she’ll just be more willing to have an audience.” This didn’t come from Lissa, or Viktoria or Meredith. Or even Dimitri. This statement came from my very own father.  
He handed me a cup, with something foul smelling coming out of it. “And how do you know what I sound like when I’m drunk?” I challenged. Abe smiled at me, “Ah, well I had the pleasure to meet my daughter in Russia, when she was attending a funeral. She was very drunk and joined in on singing with the other around the bonfire, even though she didn’t know any of the words.”  
I blushed at the memory. Dimitri stiffened next to me at the mention of his funeral. One of the guards standing up clapped me on the shoulder. “Drink up and give us a show, princess!” The guard said in a suggestive tone. Dimitri turned in his seat and glowered at the poor tipsy guard. I giggled at Dimitri’s reaction as I put the cup to my lips. I briefly wondered why I was doing this when I took in my first gulp.  
I coughed and spluttered, making everyone laugh at me. I narrowed my eyes at them and, in a true Rose Hathaway fashion, took the rest of the drink down in one try. I tipped my head all the way back and gripped Dimitri’s arm tightly to distract myself from the tightening in my throat. A strange warmth spread through me, going to my head.  
Everyone in the room cheered when I slammed the cup down on the table. Even my mother seemed to be enjoying this, which should have been strange. But… nothing seemed strange at all anymore. Everything was normal, even when Lissa pulled me out of my chair and pushed me up onto the breakfast bar so that I may sit higher than everyone else, like I was on a stage.  
My head started to spin. Yes, I thought, I want to sing for them. All of them, not just the people in the room with me, but everyone else who wasn’t celebrating with me today. My head was spinning faster and I’m pretty sure my head was moving in circles. I saw red hair and green eyes.  
There were more cheers as Mikhail emerged with a guitar. Woah. He sat on the bar beside me and leaned in. “I know a lot of songs by heart, so just name one you like and hopefully I know it.” I giggled at him. I could chose the song, that seemed very kind of him. I tried to think hard of a song that everyone would enjoy, but only one song came to mind. It wasn’t a pleasant song, not the kind people enjoy.  
Not the kind of thing to share with everyone at Thanksgiving, but I really wanted to sing just this one song. “Do you like Paramore?” I asked Mikhail. Some of the people listening made excited sounds, thinking they were going to get an upbeat rock song.  
Mikhail grinned and hoisted his guitar higher up, “I love them. Which song?”  
I leaned in and whispered my song of choice to him. His grin faded to something more perplexed, “You sure?” he asked. I nodded.  
I turned to my kitchen audience. “Sorry to depress you all. This is the song I listened to on repeat when Mason passed away. It helped a lot, so I’ll share it with you.” Even the people who didn’t know Mason seemed to become more sombre. “This song is called Misguided Ghosts.” I nodded to Mikhail. He opened his mouth, “One, two, three, four…” and the guitar carried away his voice.  
I listened to the chords and closed my eyes. I saw red hair and green eyes. And then I sang.  
“I’m going away for a while,  
But I’ll be back don’t try and follow me.  
‘Cause I’ll return as soon as possible,  
You see I’m trying to find my place,  
But it might not be here where I feel safe.  
We all learn to make mistakes,  
And run from them, from them,  
With no direction.  
We’ll run from them, from them,  
With no conviction.  
‘Cause I’m just one of those ghosts,  
Travelling endlessly.  
Don’t need no roads,  
In fact they follow me...”

I opened my eyes. No one clapped at the end of the song. They all stared, most of them with tears in their eyes. Fear flooded through me, I had ruined Thanksgiving with my morbid song. Then my mother piped up, “That was beautiful, Rose.” Dimitri and Olena nodded their heads in agreement. Then it was silent again and no one moved. I started to feel incredibly awkward sitting on the counter.  
Karolina broke the ice. “Thank you, Rose. Thanksgiving is supposed to be about being with friends and family, and we all know how much it hurts when you can’t be with them. Thank you for singing for Mason.”  
Lissa pushed past Dimitri and wrapped her arms around me. “Happy Thanksgiving,” she whispered.


	18. An Anniversary Neglected

Rose’s POV

I woke up to an empty space in the bed where Dimitri usually lay. The digital clock on my bedside table read one hour before my alarm would go off to get ready for the council meeting. I sat up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. “Dimitri?” I called. No reply. I listened for the hissing of bacon cooking or a fork scraping a plate, any sound to indicate Dimitri was in the suite. Nothing. I reached for my phone on the nightstand, and found his phone right next to mine. “Dimitri!” I shouted, followed by more silence. I got out of bed and dressed quickly in slacks and a red blouse.  
I shuffled out into the living room, which was actually clean now that Dimitri’s family went back to Russia. Vika and I still texted constantly, and Dimitri called his mom almost every day. I missed them, but I enjoyed having Dimitri all to myself now.  
There were no signs of Dimitri in the apartment, and his Duster was gone. I wrung my hands together, trying to stay calm. He could have gone anywhere in court without his phone. If he was rushed off to some battle, I would most certainly have woken up in that commotion. No, the fact that I hadn’t woken up this morning could only mean one thing: Dimitri snuck out.  
I called Lissa. “Hello?” she asked, her voice alert even though she should still be asleep. “Has Dimitri come by?” I asked. My logic told me that if Dimitri was doing something behind my back, it would involve my best friend. “No, but Christian has,” she said with humor in her voice. I waited for her to continue. When she didn’t I waved my arm impatiently, “And?”  
“And they’re together right now. No need to worry.”  
“What are they doing?”  
“I didn’t ask,” she said, but I knew she was lying.  
“Liss, you know I don’t like secrets or surprises, unless it’s a stripper cake. Tell me what’s going on.” Lissa laughed at this, her amusement irked me. “Don’t worry, Rose. You’ll like this. If I tell you now Dimitri will know it was me and he’ll never forgive me.” I tried to think of what he could be planning. Vika told him no weddings until I was older, Valentine’s day wasn’t even close. In fact, there was nothing to be celebrating this time of year. I chewed on the inside of my mouth, my left foot tapping a rapid beat on the carpet.  
“Just give me a hint!” I whined. It wasn’t my birthday for another month and a half. I tried to think of any Russian holidays in the middle of January and came up with absolutely nothing. Lissa sighed, “All right, but honestly you should have figured it out yourself.” I didn’t like the change in attitude from her. “Get on with it,” I snapped.  
“It’s your anniversary. Well, six months since you two officially started dating at court.” Armed with this revelation, I went back to my bedroom to start over. I changed into a black business skirt and black nylons (Dimitri has a thing for nylons). I kept the red blouse because I know he likes the color on me. I put a lot of effort into my hair, pinning it up in a nice bun without any flyaway hairs.  
I was about to start on my makeup when I heard the front door click open. I strolled into the living room to find Dimitri holding two plastic bags in one hand and a tray with two coffee mugs in the other. My face broke into a cheshire cat grin, “Good morning, baby.”  
Dimitri paused in his pursuit to me, “Did you just call me ‘baby’?” he asked with an eyebrow raised. I shrugged, “Wanted to try it out. I think I’ll stick to comrade, though.” I closed the distance between us and leaned up for a kiss. He responded instantly but pulled away before the kiss could pick up intensity. “This would be a lot easier if I could put these down,” he held up the bags and tray.  
“What did you get me?” I asked suggestively. Dimitri laughed, “Who said I got you anything?” I pouted, it was way too early to joke around like this. “Cut the crap, comrade. I know what today is. And you snuck out this morning, so obviously, you got me a gift.” I stepped back and held out my hands expectantly.  
Dimitri looked surprised, “What’s today?” I was about to scold him for playing with me, but I think he was honestly confused. “Lissa said you were with Christian this morning.” Dimitri nodded slowly, “I was, but what does that have to do with anything?”  
“Today’s our anniversary! Lissa told me you were with Christian, so I thought you were getting… Never mind.” Dimitri seemed completely lost now, “Anniversary? But it's only been six months since… Oh. You thought… Rose I honestly didn't think about it, I'm sorry.”  
I waved my hand nonchalantly, even though I was slightly miffed. Petty. I shouldn't expect a gift if I hadn't even given thought to our anniversary either. I decided to change the subject, “Whatever. I wasn't expecting anything. So, uh, what were you doing, if it wasn't getting a present?” I looked pointedly at the cups of coffee.  
Dimitri brightened at this, “We wanted to get you and Lissa breakfast in bed for today's meeting.” He looked at my attire, “Too late for the in bed part, huh?” I threw my head back and laughed. “Let's just chill out on the couch.”  
Chilling was harder than it should have been, but the skirt was pulled up to my belly button and restricted my slouching abilities. I sat up straight, looking too prim for a casual breakfast of bagels and hot chocolate.  
“So what's special about today?” I asked through a mouthful of bagel, “I mean, why'd you go out and get breakfast for us?” Dimitri shrugged, chewing thoughtfully on his bagel. “Christian and I just wanted to do something nice. We noticed how the meetings have been stressing both of you out.” He leaned forward and planted a kiss on my forehead. I blushed and looked down at my half eaten bagel.

“I hate you,” I said without any vehemence. Lissa smiled guiltily, “What was I supposed to think? It is your six month anniversary. It’s not my fault I know your relationship better than both of you.” She gave Dimitri a meaningful look. I could tell Dimitri was growing uncomfortable by this topic, “Alright, we get it. We don’t celebrate every silly, meaningless date on the calendar. Shall we?” I asked, holding my arms out in an exaggerated manner toward the entrance of the courthouse.  
Liss and I walked in side by side. I always liked to imagine we looked like badass bitches who could kill a man with one glare, but the reality was that we looked like pretty business women too young to fit the bill. The rest of the council hadn’t shown up yet. Most monarchs liked to be the last one in the room, but Lissa made a point to be early to every council meeting, and I always showed up when she did.  
I flopped into my seat, not worried about prying eyes just yet. Dimitri joined the few guardians in the room flanking the entrances. “So what’s on the agenda today, Majesty?” I asked. Lissa rolled her eyes at the title, “We need to discuss the economic state of Moroi living out in the human world, and their desire for health care at Moroi facilities like Court. And then we’re going to vote on funding for novice training equipment at the new school opening in Denmark.”  
I groaned. I hated talking about economics. All of the large numbers gave me a headache, and I didn’t really understand what the Moroi were complaining about all the time. You either had the money or you didn’t. End of story. “Private or public?” I asked. Lissa looked up from a stack of papers with annoyance written all over her face, “Private. Don’t you ever pay attention when we decide these things?”  
I shrugged nonchalantly, “I forget.” The rest of the council filed in as the hour dragged on. Rufus came in last, exactly one minute after the meeting was scheduled to start. A surge of anger and guilt filled me every time I saw him. I still hadn’t told Lissa about Rufus’ role in Tasha’s escape. Tasha, who was still missing. I wasn’t trying to protect Rufus by keeping his secret, but I didn’t want to start any more problems.  
If I revealed Rufus, the Court would be in an uproar, and my own honesty would questioned. It was my very own double edged sword. I didn’t get to ponder this for long, because Lissa called the room to attention. Let the headache begin.  
Typically, I stayed out of Moroi matters in the law and stayed fairly quiet during those discussions. I was here to represent the dhampirs, so I know my voice wouldn’t be appreciated when it came to voting for the other race. I just sat back and voted for what Lissa would vote for. Then came the dhampir topics, which I was very involved in, obviously. Over time, the other council members came to respect my opinions, or at least they were willing to listen to me and take consideration. All except for Rufus.  
“I think that this new school should have a higher budget than the other school for this quarter, just to get them started off on the right foot. They need all new equipment, whereas the other school only need to replace the old and useless equipment.” This came from Princess Conta. Then, “They can manage with the same budget that we give to St. Vladimir’s and St. Basil’s and all of the other schools every year. Why should they get any more?” That came from Princess Voda.  
“Because, like Princess Conta said, they don’t simply need to replace a handful of dumbbells and training mats, they need to buy everything new. But I agree with you, Princess Voda. We need to keep the budget reasonable. I suggest we get the other schools to donate equipment to the new school.” The last one came from Rufus.  
“Hand Me Down equipment? Thanks to the already low budgets for the other schools, they have no useful or effective equipment to donate. Everything they could sacrifice would be crap,” I said. “Princess Hathaway, watch your mouth!” Lissa scolded. I flinched at the harsh tone in Lissa’s voice. Princess Conta jumped in, “Rosemarie is right. We don’t give the novices enough funds for the proper training they need to become decent guardians.” She grew pensive for a moment, “In fact, we should just go ahead and increase the budget for every school, not just the one in Denmark.”  
Rufus coughed, if he were drinking water, he would have spit it out. “Increase it! That’s absurd!” Before he could put up much of an argument, though, the rest of the council was in a heated discussion. I never would have dreamed of proposing what Princess Conta did, but I was grateful for it. Prince Zeklos turned to me and was about to argue something when Princess Conta raised her hand up. The council respectfully quieted.  
Princess Conta stood and turned to Lissa, “I formally propose that the council increase the funds for novice school equipment and guardian training programs at each school under the Court’s jurisdiction by 500,000 US dollars.” The room stayed silent, though many opened and closed their mouths several times. I stared in awe. This was actually happening, and a Moroi initiated it. Lissa nodded and the princess sat down. “Thank you, Princess Conta. Does anyone have anything to add to this?” Rufus made a motion but didn’t stand up.  
“Alright then,” Lissa said, “let’s vote on this. Those for increasing the budget to each school by $500,000?” I raised my hand instantly, along with Princess Conta. After a pause, so did Voda, Ivashkov, Ozera, Drozdov and Dashkov and Badica. Last but not least, Lissa raised her hand. We had the majority.  
“It’s settled then. This will go into effect at the start of the next quarter. Does anyone have anything else to contribute to today’s meeting?”  
I was practically bouncing in my seat. Nobody spoke up. “Then that will be all. You’re all dismissed. Thank you.” I shot up from my seat and went straight to Lissa’s chair. As Zeklos passed me I heard him mutter, “Half a million dollars!” I grabbed Lissa’s wrist in excitement. “Liss, please tell me that really happened!” Lissa sighed and nodded, “That really happened.” Her mouth was pulled down at the edges, the first signs of a frown.  
“What’s wrong?” I asked, squeezing Lissa’s hand. Lissa sighed again and gave me an exasperated look, “Rose, there are over fifty Moroi schools around the world. That’s a lot of money going out.” Lissa leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table in front of her. I put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. “Liss, it’s going to be okay. We have the money to do this. Look at the bright side! The Dhampirs just scored huge today, and it was a Moroi who made it happen. Look how far we’ve come!”  
Lissa laughed, “I can’t believe Conta did that. I don’t know if we would have gotten the votes to pass if you’d been the one to suggest it.” I tried to not let the truth of that matter bring me down. If being a successful princess meant befriending the rest of the council and letting come up with ideas for me, then I would do just that. “The point is, now the dhampirs have one more voice in their favor. C’mon, we need to celebrate!” I tugged on Lissa’s shoulder, but she didn’t budge.  
“Not today, Rose. I’m going to look at some numbers. See if I can save us from losing a couple million dollars.” Lissa got up from her seat and waved a hand. In an instant all of her guards were flanking her. She walked out of the room without a second glance.  
I stared after her, wondering what would be making Lissa so upset. This vote was the best thing that’s happened while I’ve been princess! I didn’t think Lissa would care so much about the numbers and costs. I knew Lissa well enough to know that something bigger was going on. I poked at Lissa’s thoughts- if I could just see what was on her mind... “Rose?” I jumped when I heard my name, coming back to reality.  
“Yeah?” I turned to Dimitri just as he swept me up in a hug and twirled me. He put me back down and cupped my giggling face. “That was amazing! People have really warmed up to you on the council, Roza.” He leaned down for a kiss, but I didn’t return it with much enthusiasm. “What’s wrong?”  
I thought back to Lissa’s attitude today, and this morning. “Lissa’s been acting weird. Have you noticed that?” Dimitri wrapped his arms around me and held me close, “Not me, but I think Christian has. It was his idea to get breakfast for Lissa. I just tagged along.”  
I stepped out of Dimitri’s embrace, feeling too caught up with my own thoughts to take comfort from him. “I need to do some research,” I stated. Dimitri took in my mischievous smirk. “What do you-” but before Dimitri could finish I was in Lissa’s head.  
Lissa was almost back to her apartment by now, walking at a brisk pace in the cool air. Her guards silently escorted her. Lissa kept her head bent low to avoid the worst of the wind hitting her face. Her phone buzzed in her front pocket. She fished the phone out of her pocket and smiled down at the caller ID “Christian. I’m on my way home now.” I heard the TV on in the background through the phone. “Good. Have you heard back from Dr. Franke yet?”  
Lissa slowed in her pace, “No. He said he would know by 5 a.m. at the earliest. Be patient.” Know what? I didn’t even know about a Dr. Franke. I tried digging into Lissa’s memories, but she had a mental block on them. Lissa suddenly stopped moving, I could feel her grow weary, “I have to get off the phone. Someone’s eavesdropping.” Lissa shoved her phone in her pocket. I heard her voice, though not coming out of her mouth. She was speaking directly into my head. Stay out of my thoughts, Rose. Don’t ruin the surprise. The words were civil enough, but her tone was harsh and bitter.  
Then she kicked me out.  
The courtroom came back into existence. Dimitri sat in my council chair, tossing his phone back and forth. We were the only people in the room. He gave me a worried look, “That was fast. Did you find out what you needed to know?” My knees felt shaky and I sat in Ivashkov’s seat before I could fall. I shook my head slowly, shocked at that whole experience. “Lissa’s hiding something from me.”  
Dimitri pursed his lips, “Is it bad?” I shook my head again, wanting to crawl into a hole. My best friend was keeping a secret from me. How could that not be bad? “I… don’t know.” I don’t remember feeling so helpless for a long time. Things were just starting to feel normal again after Tasha’s escape. The council was accepting me, Dimitri and I were happy, everything was perfect. I thought. It seemed that I was never going to catch a break with all the drama.  
If there’s anything I know about myself, it’s that I don’t like feeling helpless. “I don’t know,” I repeated, “but I’m going to find out.”


	19. Oh the Baby Drama

Rose’s POV

“Do you know a Dr Franke?” I asked Dimitri. He shook his head, “Does he work at court?” he asked. I shrugged, “I don't know, Lissa was on the phone with Christian. They're waiting to hear from this guy.” Dimitri raised one eyebrow at me, “Waiting to hear what?” I blew out air in frustration. Don’t even think it, Rose. There’s no way Lissa is…  
“I don’t know Dimitri, what kind of news do people wait to hear from a doctor?” I snapped. The thought of Lissa being pregnant crossed my mind, but I immediately dismissed the idea. She would have told me something like that. I’m sure of it. Dimitri held his hands up in a defensive gesture, though he gave me a sharp look. “Don’t get mad at me, I’m trying to help here.” I rolled my eyes at him, which made him narrow his eyes at me. “Alright. Let’s go home. I need to look this guy up, see what kind of work he does. Apparently he’s finding something out at 5am that Lissa’s interested in,” I looked at the clock hanging in the courtroom, “We have three hours to find out who he is, or for Lissa to let me back into her head, whichever happens first…”  
Dimitri shook his head, “She’s going to have to tell you sooner or later. Probably sooner, knowing her. Why stress yourself out about it now? Lissa knows what she’s doing, I hope. Let’s go back home,” Dimitri stood with a determined look on his face and took the two steps to where I was, bringing his mouth close to my ear and lowering his voice, “and celebrate our anniversary.” I blushed slightly, letting myself get distracted by his voice. Getting into bed with Dimitri right now sounded so enticing; I was almost too eager to put my concern for Lissa in the back of my head; at least for now. He was right, there was nothing I could do in three hours, except be here, with Dimitri.  
I took in Dimitri’s now smoldering gaze and started to feel almost dizzy with the thoughts of what he could do to me in private. “We’ve only been together six months, we don’t have to celebrate anything until we make it to a year,” I pointed out in a soft voice. Dimitri smiled dangerously and reached for my hand. He brought my hand up to cup his face and leaned down so that his forehead was touching mine. “I think we have every reason to celebrate now. You and I were never supposed to work out, but we did it. Even after I had been turned into a Strigoi, even after you became princess. We’ve been fighting to be together for a long time now, and we finally got six amazing months together. And this is just the start of our lives together. Roza-”  
I brought my lips to his before he could finish his thought. I didn’t want him to bring me to tears, and it was quickly going in that direction with his sweet words. The kiss was full of fire and promised much more than just our lips touching. The hand that was cupping his face tangled itself in Dimitri’s hair while my other hand gripped the front of his shirt, bringing him closer to me. Dimitri didn’t hesitate to reciprocate. His hands were on my hips in an instant, pulling my hips as close as possible to his. I stood on my toes so that my hips could grind on his, making him moan in my mouth. If we didn’t stop now, we weren’t going to make it back to the suite.  
He picked me up by the waist and quickly sat me down on the council table; I scooted to the very edge so that I could continue giving Dimitri friction from my body. He pulled his lips away from mine just enough to speak, “Roza… there are cameras in here.” I could see him considering the consequences of what would soon become a very incriminating act. I smiled, feeling more brazen than I had even when I threatened Rufus. “I’ll have Mikhail delete the footage.”  
With that, there was nothing else to be considered. Dimitri gave me a wicked smile before his lips were on mine again. Has it really only been six months with this man? Every time we’re together, it feels so familiar yet so achingly new and foreign. Apparently Dimitri still has much to show me.  
It wasn’t very long before I was yanking our clothes off, desperate to feel his body on mine. I managed to get my shirt off and his duster off. Dimitri wasn’t having that though. His hand gripped my wrist as I was in the process of unzipping his jeans. “Not yet, Roza. We can take it slow,” he whispered huskily. I was nearly panting from the kisses and my own anticipation at this point. “Are you kidding me? Get your damn clothes off!” I demanded. Dimitri just laughed at me, “No, I don’t think I will quite yet.” He kissed down my neck teasingly, making me gasp in pleasure. “Lay down, princess” he ordered.  
I did as he said and scooted back on the table. Dimitri climbed on so that he was hovering over me now. His elbow supported most of his weight while his other hand was free to roam my body. His hand ran up my thigh, pushing the material of my skirt up as his hand came closer to my waist. Just before his hand reached it’s destination, he changed course and wrapped my leg around his waist. I bit my lip, remembering the same move from our first time together. Dimitri’s hand was travelling back to it’s original place at an agonizingly slow pace, and I could see the desire for me burning in his eyes. “Roza,” he breathed, “did you wear these just for me?” His fingers plucked at the material of my nylons. I giggled and nodded, “I thought you’d like it.”  
Dimitri kissed my jawbone and then my neck, starting a trail of kisses that kept getting lower on my body. “I do like it. I love it.” He looked up from where he had just kissed below my belly button. “Now let me show you how much I love you, Roza.”  
We stayed in the courtroom for what seemed like forever, the whole time Dimitri worshipped my body, barely letting me do any favors for him in return. Needless to say, I had to make a very embarrassing phone call to Mikhail afterwards.  
*****************************  
By the time the sun came up Dimitri and I found ourselves in Lissa’s gigantic suite so that I could interrogate her. It was past 5am, so I assumed she had already received her news from this mystery doctor. Once I finally came down from the high of being with Dimitri, I decided it was time to get to work. “Lissa, you told me not the ruin the surprise, so I’m didn’t. I waited,” I chose not to include just what I was doing while I waited for the news. “Now spill.”  
Lissa jumped up and down, beaming at me. All of her earlier anxiety and bitchiness were completely gone now. “We just got the results. Come with us,” was all she said before grabbing Christian’s hand and rushing out of the suite. The four of us, along with four of Lissa’s guardians, speed walked through the courts grounds. She went straight to the clinic, walking down endless hallways until we ended up in a more secluded area in the hospital. Lissa walked up to a door labeled PRIVATE and knocked rapidly.  
Her hand was already turning the knob before a female voice called out “Come in!” Lissa ushered me, Dimitri and Christian in and asked her guards to wait outside before closing the door. A Moroi man wearing a lab coat stood by the counter, probably Dr Franke. A young dhampir woman and her dhampir boyfriend in their twenties or thirties sat next to each other on the exam table, holding hands and smiling. They both jumped down at our entrance and bowed their heads. “Your Majesty, Princess Hathaway, Lord Ozera, Guardian Belikov,” they said in unison. I was slightly surprised and amused that they would include Dimitri in their greeting.  
Lissa stepped forward and hugged the dhampir girl, much to the surprise of everyone in the room. “Congratulations! I am so happy for you two.” The coupled offered wide smiles and the girl laid a hand on her stomach. I almost gaped at the girl in front of me. I must have been wrong about the man being her boyfriend if she’s pregnant. “Thank you. For everything, we don’t know how we can repay you!” My confusion continued to grow, threatening to interrupt their moment so that I could ask questions.  
Lissa shook her head, “You already have.” Dimitri wore his guardian mask, and Christian had a faint hint of a smile on his face. Obviously Lissa didn’t see the need to keep her boyfriend in the dark about whatever this was. Finally, seeming to remember that the rest of us were here, Lissa turned around. “Rose, Dimitri, I want you to meet Dr Franke. Him and his team have been helping me recently. And this is Taylor and Wade Hernandez. They’ve been married for five years; both of them work as guards at Alder Academy in California so that they can be close to each oth-”  
“Wait, you two are married?” I asked incredulously, staring at Taylor’s bare finger where a ring should be. Lissa didn’t scold me for the interruption, and Taylor simply smiled, noticing where my gaze was. “I only wear my ring on special occasions, in case I’m caught in a fight or something. And I know it’s not conventional for guardians to have serious relationships together, but you and Guardian Belikov are also involved, correct?”  
I nodded slowly as I processed this information. Maybe I read too much into her holding her stomach and Lissa’s congratulations. There’s no way Taylor could be pregnant, not without her husband screaming and cursing about her sleeping with a Moroi.  
Lissa cleared her throat, “We just found out that Taylor and Wade are expecting their first child.”  
Well then.  
Everything slowed down in that instant. If this is what I thought it was, my entire life was about to change. I simply stared at Taylor’s still flat belly; remembering what Oksana told me so long ago. I had told Lissa immediately about the chances of Dhampirs having children together, but I kept Dimitri in the dark. Dimitri’s surprise proved that he knew nothing about what Oksana told me.  
“What do you mean?” he asked, looking between Taylor and Wade. When no one said anything Dimitri turned to Lissa, “That’s not possible” he stated firmly. Lissa gave me a confused look, “You didn’t tell him?”  
Dimitri stepped toward me, “Didn’t tell me what?” He looked angry now. Angry and confused. I opened my mouth to speak but the words didn’t come out. It shouldn’t be possible.  
I took a few deep breaths, everyone in the room was waiting for me to speak first. I faced Dimitri, hoping I didn’t look too guilty. “Remember when Viktoria told you that Oksana had a plan for us to have a baby? And I told you that Viktoria was lying, that she misunderstood what Oksana was trying to tell me? And then I told Rufus there would be a dhampir heir, but then I told you that I was just bluffing?” I waiting for Dimitri to nod before continuing.  
“Well… I lied. About it all... I didn’t know if it was possible, and I didn’t want you to expect a miracle to happen. Oksana told me that dhampirs with large amounts of healing magic coursing through them would be able to reproduce with other dhampirs, because enough healing magic would cure everything. Even infertility.” I paused, gauging Dimitri’s reaction as the news sunk in. For once, he didn’t have the conscious ability to put up his mask, so all of his emotions were exposed to the entire room. His mouth was agape and his eyebrows were furrowed together in disbelief. His eyes were wide with awe and… pain. I couldn’t look at him any longer without causing myself some pain.  
I turned to Lissa. “When did you do this?” I asked accusingly, jerking my head in the couple’s direction. The tension in the room continued to build, but somehow Lissa kept a smile on her face. “As soon as you told me what Oksana said. I started looking for Dhampir couples across the country. Taylor and Wade were ideal because of their age and good standing with their colleagues. I needed a couple that was public for a long period of time, so that once the pregnancy becomes public news, there won’t be too much doubt about the child’s parentage. Of course, because of the situation, there will be some doubt…” She gave a sympathetic look to the couple.  
Wade shrugged, “You explained how hard it would be when you reached out to us. I know many people won’t believe that I’m the father. I still think it’s worth it.” Lissa nodded, “Yes, but when the time comes a DNA test will clear all of that up.”  
I ran my hands through my hair, growing more frustrated by the minute. Dimitri was still standing there with that hurt and frustrated expression which was only making my mood worse. “Wait wait wait. This is happening too fast. You’re telling me that, based off of Oksana’s old wive’s tale, you found two dhampirs willing for you to experiment on them with Spirit and have a baby? And what you're showing me is that… it actually worked? It's possible for us to have children?” I stared at Taylor for the millionth time today, “You’re really having another dhampir’s child?” I asked pleadingly.  
Taylor smiled at me, “Yes. I am.”  
*********************************  
After Taylor’s reassurance that a dhampir-dhampir couple could produce a baby with some help from Spirit, I started another stream of questions, but Lissa said that there was no reason for me to interrogate the couple. She dismissed the couple and told me and Dimitri she would meet us at our suite tomorrow morning to explain everything else.  
I knew that Dimitri was just as shocked as I was, but he was even more upset about being kept in the dark about it.  
The walk back to the suite was the most awkward and possibly heart wrenching fifteen minutes of my life. It didn’t help that Dimitri slammed the door when we got there. Suddenly I wished Lissa had come back with us so that Dimitri couldn’t yell at me. “When were you going to tell me?” he demanded, his anger rolling off of him. It was times like these that I was glad I couldn’t read auras. I did what I always did when I fought with Dimitri; I stood tall and refused to swallow my pride. “If Lissa hadn’t gone and done this experiment, then I wouldn't tell you until I decided to look into it myself.”  
Dimitri flexed his jaw, “And when would you have decided to ‘look into it’?” I narrowed my eyes, refusing to cower under his accusing gaze. “Whenever I decided I was ready to have children.” Dimitri threw his arm up in frustration, “You still should have told me! Instead you chose to lie to my face!”  
I stepped forward and jabbed a finger at his chest, “I was trying to make sure you didn’t get your hopes up! What if I had told you? Hm? I know you want kids, Dimitri, even though you told me you’re okay with giving that up to be with me. But what if I told you there was a chance we could have kids together and then it turned out to be a fable? What then? You would have been broken hearted. I had no way of knowing it would actually work.”  
My rant only got Dimitri more worked up. His hands gripped the side of his face like it might explode. He started gesturing wildly as he spoke, pointing at me a lot. “Are you insane! You think that would have hurt more than knowing you lied to me about it?! You fed me some bullshit about Oksana talking nonsense, and you bluffing to Rufus and the court, and I bought it! I can’t believe I fucking believed you! God, you still act like such a child, only thinking of yourself. We had a chance to build a family together, a chance to put all of the doubt the court has in your power behind us, and you buried it! You had a chance to make me the happiest man on the earth and you blew it.”  
I stepped back with the force of his words. It would have hurt less if he had physically slapped me. Instead of the pain and guilt taking over, though, I was filled with more rage. “How. Dare. You.” I hissed. He had the audacity to glare at me, which sent me over the edge, screaming at him louder than I’ve ever screamed at another person. “HOW DARE YOU! How could I have ruined a chance for a family when we didn't believe we could even have kids! Oksana never gave me a choice! There was no decision to make! The council is forcing me to have a kid whether I want to or not! And here you are acting like you’ve been wronged because I wanted to take some time and think it through. I am fucking eighteen years old, or have you forgotten?” And with that, the venom drained from my voice, and all that was left of my emotions was agony. Tears welled up in my eyes and my lip quivered, but I wasn’t done talking yet, even though I knew I wouldn’t be able to fight of the tears if I said anything else.  
“Why is it so wrong for me to want to enjoy my adult life for a while before it’s ripped away by a child? Why is it so wrong for me to want to have that part of my life completely under my control, instead of everyone else telling what I should do. All I wanted was to wait. I’m glad Lissa made it work, but I never asked her to do it. I wanted to be older... I don’t want kids yet.”  
My chest was heaving up and down but I didn’t feel like I was getting enough oxygen to my lungs. Dimitri didn’t say anything for a long while. We both stood there, him shaking with anger, me with tears streaming down my face. The only time Dimitri didn’t comfort me when I was about to cry was when he was a Strigoi, but he didn’t comfort me now. He seemed less angry as he pinched the bridge of his nose and screwed his eyes shut in concentration.  
“You honestly didn’t think that I would have supported you?” he asked in deadpan voice. I looked at the ground not really knowing what to say. I grasped for the right words, thinking of how I could make things better. Dimitri apparently didn’t want to wait for my answer though, so he stalked into the master bedroom and shut the door behind him. At least he didn’t slam it.  
My thoughts wandered back to this morning, how Dimitri told me he loved me, and showed me with his body. How could we have gone from that to having our worst fight ever in less than a day? I sank to my knees as I started full on sobbing. What was wrong with me? I had the best intentions and still managed to make a mess of my relationship. All I could hear was my own sobs and running water. Dimitri was probably taking a shower to avoid me. This was going to be extremely uncomfortable. As angry as he was with me, he’s still my guardian and has a duty to stay near me.  
The self doubt sank, and I started second guessing my choice to not tell Dimitri. I definitely regretted saying the things I did tonight. I should have just let him yell at me and told him he was right, because he was in this case. Why couldn’t I swallow my damn pride?  
Suddenly the bedroom door opened and Dimitri walked over to me. Without hesitating he knelt down and scooped me into his arms, carrying me into the bedroom. I didn’t protest, secretly pleased that he calmed down enough to be around me. He walked right into the master bathroom where the large tub was filling up with water and set me down on my feet. He placed both of his hands on my shoulders, looking at me squarely, “We’re not done talking about this, but I hate it when I yell at you and when you cry. I want to take a break from fighting, okay?” He looked at me hopefully, there was no way I could have turned this offer down. I nodded, not trusting my voice.  
“Take your clothes off,” he said, none of the earlier anger lacing his voice now. We stripped off our clothes, then I let Dimitri lead me into the tub. I sat with my back to his chest, his arms wrapped around me.  
We didn’t say anything as we sat there, soaking in the hot water. Sometimes Dimitri would kiss my neck or my head. Eventually I tipped my head back and arched my back just enough to kiss his lips tentatively, still unsure of how calm he was feeling right now. Dimitri kissed me back, but the kiss didn’t pick up intensity like our kisses usually did. I relaxed my back and lay against him again, content to not say anything for now.  
There was nothing sexual about our bath together, we just enjoyed each other's closeness, and the momentary ceasefire that the water provided us. Dimitri started to trace my body with his hands almost absentmindedly, like he does when we lay in bed together. I wish we could have stayed there all night, but the water got cold after an hour. I got out of the tub first and grabbed a towel for me and Dimitri. I thought the spell would be broken then, but a haze of tense peace still hung between us.  
I never thought being naked in the same room as him would be such a sobering moment. Once we were both wrapped in our towels I laced my fingers through his and tugged him to the bed before he could argue or try to sleep in the spare bedroom. I crawled into bed with my towel still wrapped around me despite my hair still dripping water.  
I made sure to lay close to him on our sides, both of our heads resting on the same pillow. Dimitri looked like he had a thousand things to say to me right now, but he never opened his mouth. He just studied me, his hand still lazily tracing my body. I looked at his eyes, taking in the color, thinking of how that color is my favorite thing to see before I fall asleep and when I wake up. Looking into his eyes, I knew that I wanted to pacify this fight before anything else was said that we would regret. It didn't matter right now that I was admitting fault, just as long as he forgave me and I felt that love that we were surrounded by when today began.  
I lifted a finger to Dimitri’s lips so that he knew to let me say it all before he could speak.  
“I never had the time to think about if I even wanted to be a mother. Growing up to become a guardian, it was never an issue, but then, all of the sudden the council was making it mandatory for me to provide and heir. Me. Of all people. When Oksana told me that I might be able to have a kid with you, I got so excited and happy. But I was also scared. Nobody would believe us, they would have thought that I’d cheated on you. This baby would be considered a bastard. And on top of that, I was terrified to think of myself as a mother. I mean, you saw how I used to be with my mom. I told myself that it was because I’m so young. I decided to wait to tell you, so that I could come the decision to have kids on my own terms, with no pressure from anyone else. I only told Lissa because I needed to work through the possibilities and see how we could get the council to believe it, I just couldn't tell you. Even before I thought about telling you, I needed the time to consider all the aspects of having a kid. I knew that if I told you, then you would be impatient to make a baby, just like you’re impatient to get me to marry you. I’m sorry, Dimitri. I never wanted to hurt you.”  
Dimitri stopped his tracing on my hip and pulled me into an embrace and rested his head on my collar bone. I ran my fingers through his damp hair, waiting for him to say anything. For a long time we just lay there, and I was already drifting off into sleep when I felt him lift his head and whisper, “I love you Roza.”


	20. An Ultimatum and an Explination

Rose’s POV

I woke up slowly; no alarm or life threatening situation to rouse me. My body and mind took it’s glorious time to rejoin the waking world. First I was aware of Dimitri’s arm still holding me close to his body in his sleep. I smiled and snuggled in closer to him, seeking warmth and comfort from him. The sun was setting, the last hours of daylight seeping into the bedroom, covering us in a lazy glow. His arm tightened around me, lulling me into a sense of peace. I could have stayed there all morning, too afraid to wake him up and resume any argument from last night. I leaned back slightly, being careful not to move too suddenly so that I could study Dimitri’s face, so relaxed and peaceful in his sleep.  
Looking at him now it’s hard to imagine that I was screaming at him at the top of my lungs out of spite. It’s hard to imagine that he could make me cry. Dimitri had said we weren’t done talking, but I was ready to forget our fight ever happened. The more I thought about it, the more senseless the fight seemed. Yes, I lied to him, and I can see why he’s hurt by that. But I had my reasons, and I tend not to question my motives once I’ve already made up my mind. I was too stubborn, and Dimitri… Well to be perfectly honest he was justified for being angry. He wouldn’t have said some of the hurtful things last night if I hadn’t been such a bitch to him.  
I didn’t even take the time to process that our fight was triggered by Taylor’s pregnancy. Taylor, who is married to another dhampir. The idea seemed too crazy to wrap my head around. Despite everything I grew up believing, despite my doubt in Oksana’s words, two dhampirs were able to conceive.  
Which, ultimately, meant that Dimitri and I could too.  
“You’re staring at me,” Dimitri mumbled. Not asleep, apparently. He peeked open one eye before closing it again, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. I brushed my fingertips along his cheekbone lightly so that I didn’t have to say anything. I didn’t want to talk right now.  
Dimitri shook his head lazily, “I don’t want to get out of bed today.” He opened his eyes fully to look study me the same way I was studying him. I would never get tired of looking at him. “But…” he mumbled. I sucked in a nervous breath, knowing that Dimitri would just rather rip off the band aid. He was more awake now; his content laziness replaced with sharp awareness. “Rose, we still need to… talk. About things.”  
Internally, I groaned, but I still nodded. He didn’t call me Roza; that was not good news. His voice was soft, barely a whisper, yet it carried so much force. Steeling myself, I met his gaze and prepared for another fight. If we did end up fighting now, it would be incredibly awkward, since we were naked except for our towels, and still held each other in a half embrace. Here goes nothing, I thought.  
“I said everything I wanted to say last night,” I paused, waiting for the right words to form. “I also… said a lot of things I didn’t want to last night.” The apology was evident enough to me, but I knew Dimitri would want to hear it in words. I swallowed hard, taking in my pride and hoping that he could forgive me. “I’m really sorry Dimitri.”  
I bit my lip to let him know that I was done talking. He could say anything to me right now and I would do my best to hold my tongue, no matter how much it hurt me. But Dimitri was silent for a long time, a strange look on his face. His eyes held so much emotion, but didn’t tell me anything about how he felt right now. I couldn’t tell if the fire in his eyes was from passion or fury, and it was driving me crazy.  
All I could do was sit there, and bite my lip, and count the heartbeats that pounded out like a war calling in the silence between us. Dimitri’s gaze burned into me, making me feel more exposed than I already was. For someone who wanted to talk he wasn’t doing a lot of talking. I felt myself cracking under the silence and his stare. He wanted to do this, he’s messing with your head, I thought.  
I finally broke my resolve to keep quiet, “Oh for Christ’s sake will you just say something!” I hissed in frustration. I thought I would get Dimitri to laugh in that exasperated way he always did when I got frustrated, but he didn’t. Instead, he sighed.  
“Roza,” he whispered, “Roza, Roza, Roza.” He shook his head and brought me closer so that he could bring our faces close together, just a breath apart.. As much as I loved getting a reaction out of him, it almost hurt to be this close and have to restrain myself from kissing him. “I can’t stand it when you keep things from me. I thought I was able to tell when you were lying to me, but I guess not…” He closed his eyes, his hand cupping my face. I focused on keeping my breath steady so that he wouldn’t see how much I was hurt by my own doing.  
Dimitri moved so suddenly, I didn’t have time to react when he brought his lips to mine. I was too shocked to hold on to him when he ended this kiss just as suddenly. I looked at him with surprise, did this mean I was forgiven? All I wanted was for Dimitri to forgive me. That’s all you want? I thought bitterly.  
“I need to know...” he said. His soft voice pulled me out of my small reverie, back into the disaster of reality. “I need to know that you aren’t hiding anything else from me. I you to be completely honest with me. I won’t be lied to again.” He didn’t have to say what I knew he meant. He was giving me an ultimatum. I would have to come clean about everything and vow to never lie again, or he would leave me.  
Just like last night, tears threatened to well up and stream down my face. I ducked my head to bury my face in his chest, all the while thinking of the awful things Dimitri doesn’t know. I managed to hold back my sobs, only because I could feel Dimitri rubbing soothing circles in my back. All I know is that I can’t lose Dimitri. I have walked through hell to save him, and I would walk through more if it meant keeping him by my side. Other than Lissa, he is the only person I have chosen to be a part of my family.  
“Family…” I muttered into his shirt. Dimitri’s hands stopping moving on my back, “hmm?”  
I lifted my head and repeated myself, “Family. You’re my family.”  
Dimitri nodded, “Roza, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Don’t make me lose you. You’re my family.”  
I scooted closer to him and gripped his arm in panic, “You won’t lose me. I haven’t lied to you about anything else. The only thing is Randal. You know I diluted the story, but that was also for your sake. I didn’t lie to you about what he did to me, but please don’t make me go into details about it. Trust me, you don’t want to know. The only thing I lied about was Oksana’s theory. I promise. And I only did that because I thought it was the right thing to-”  
Dimitri brought his lips to mine, effectively surprising me twice in one morning. My hands found themselves tangled in his hair, desperately holding him close. Dimitri answered back just as fiercely, one hand on my lower back, keeping me close, the other hand in my hair, pulling my head back to give him more access to my mouth. Without words, with just his lips, Dimitri was letting me know that I was forgiven, that he loved me. After a while, I felt myself starting to get out of breath, but I didn’t want the kiss to end.  
It was Dimitri who finally broke the kiss, pulling back to take a deep breath. There wasn’t much that needed to be said after that, the argument had diffused, Dimitri and I would move on and face our next challenge as a team again. I leaned back as I did when I woke up to study his face, my fingers lightly brushing the stubble on his cheek.  
Dimitri smirked, “You’re staring again.”  
Me, being the inappropriate and improper Rose that I am, I opted for a joke, “I’m just deciding if you’re attractive enough to reproduce with.”  
Dimitri laughed, a full out genuine laugh, and I felt relieved. “And what have you decided?” he asked playfully. I shrugged, “Well, you’re not that great looking, but I guess I can make it work…”  
Dimitri laughed again, “I’m not hot, huh?” he asked arrogantly. He rolled over so that I was below him, trapped me between his elbows. “No,” I breathed, “not at all. You look like a troll.”  
Dimitri smiled, knowing the effect he had on me. He leaned down more onto me, bringing his lips to my neck, kissing lightly down to my collar bone. I gasped lightly, a fire starting to burn within me. “Say I’m hot,” he commanded.  
I laughed breathlessly. Two could play at this game. “No,” I said defiantly. Dimitri smiled against my skin and pulled at the material of my towel, exposing my chest to him. He continued kissing and sucking my skin. “I’ll get you to say I’m hot. In fact, I’ll get you to say a lot of things before Lissa gets here.”  
**************************  
Dimitri stood by the stove, flipping the omelettes he was making us for breakfast. I sat at the breakfast counter, leaning forward with my chin in my palm. “Can I just say that makeup sex is the best?” I asked pleasantly. Dimitri grinned, “It’s definitely a nice way to wake up. Maybe we should start fighting more often?”  
I giggled, “Okay but not about serious things. We can fight about what color to paint the bedroom or something.” Dimitri raised an eyebrow, “What’s wrong with the color it is now?”  
Before I could respond I felt Lissa’s presence through the bond, walking up to the suite’s door. “One sec,” I muttered and went to open the door for her. Thankfully Dimitri and I were fully clothed, bra and everything, or I wouldn’t have let in her guardians. “Would you like an omelette?” Dimitri asked politely as Lissa sat next to me at the breakfast bar. “No thanks, I already ate.”  
Lissa didn’t start talking until Dimitri sat down with our plates and we started eating. “Yesterday you asked me how long it took to get this to work, and how I did it.” I stuffed my face with breakfast and nodded to encourage Lissa to talk more. “I found them right after Thanksgiving, so about two months ago.” Lissa held up a plain silver ring, similar to the one Oksana gave me in Russia. “This is infused with healing magic. I gave one each to Taylor and Wade to wear during… well, you know. That was our first attempt. We gave Taylor a pregnancy test after two weeks that turned up negative. I thought maybe there wasn’t enough healing magic in the rings. We needed to find a way to get more spirit into their systems, Wade suggested injuring himself, so that I could heal him. He thought if the healing came straight from the spirit user and not from a ring then it would work.”  
I held up my hand to stop her and finished chewing egg, “You’ve healed me a million times, even brought me back from death. That should be more than enough spirit, so why haven’t I gotten pregnant yet? I mean, Dimitri and I have unprotected sex all the time.” Dimitri almost spit out whatever was in his mouth and coughed several times, feeling awkward at my sex comment in front of Lissa and her guardians.  
Lissa ignored Dimitri’s discomfort. “I considered that. You can’t be the only Shadow Kissed dhampir who has unprotected sex, we would have heard stories of mystery babies by now. So I asked for Sonya’s help, since she knows more about spirit than me. Dr Franke gave Wade small incisions which I would heal. Sonya observed his aura when I healed him; she said there was a spike in his aura when I healed him, but the magic started leaving his system almost immediately. When we told the couple this, Wade said we simply needed to get more magic into him before it faded away.”  
Lissa shook her head at the memory, looking sheepish, “Wade had a lot of faith in my abilities. He showed up to the clinic with a broken arm, he told me he broke it himself so that more spirit would be in his system. As soon as I healed him he ran back to his hotel room to have sex with Taylor.” Lissa chuckled, “He didn’t want to waste any time or lose any magic.”  
Laughter bubbled up in me, “That’s enthusiastic of him,” I commented. Lissa grinned, “Yes, I’m not sure this would have worked without his… cooperation. Anway, more time passes and Taylor’s still not pregnant. I started to think you were right, that it wasn’t possible at all. Sonya observing their auras was the most useful information we had, but there wasn’t much we could do about the fading healing magic. I thought that it would work if... if one of them was turned.”  
There was a clatter as Dimitri dropped his fork, “No. You didn’t.”  
Lissa shook her head vehemently, “Of course not. It was just a thought. When I transformed you, Dimitri, your aura was filled with spirit, you had enough healing magic pumping through your veins that you could have been shot in the heart and lived. Only that all faded away when the court had you in the jail cell for days. But, if you and Rose were together right after your transformation, I’m pretty sure she would have gotten pregnant. The same goes for you, Rose. If you had been with anyone right after the car accident, you would probably have gotten pregnant then.”  
I swallowed a large chunk of omelette, “I get it. Now tell me how Taylor and Wade got the bun in the oven.” Lissa looked down at her hands nervously, “Before I tell you this, you have to understand that Wade doesn’t know much about spirit either, or the side effects, so don’t be angry with him. He was just trying to get this experiment to work.”  
Lissa looked up at me and Dimitri hesitantly. I put down my fork and turned all of my attention to Lissa now, nodding for her to continue. She took a deep breath. “Wade stabbed himself in the sternum with a kitchen knife. Taylor called me, and he was already unconscious by the time I got to the clinic. She said he did it so that I could get more magic into him. I healed him, and he went back home less than five minutes later. That was two weeks ago yesterday…”  
She pursed her lips, waiting for some kind of response. I looked at Dimitri to say something, since I couldn’t form a sentence at the moment. Instead of giving me answers, Lissa’s story left me with more questions.  
“How did Rose not catch on to this earlier? If you were using that much spirit, she would feel it,” Dimitri finally said. I shook my head slowly, I hadn’t even considered that. Lissa looked pained as she thought of what to say. “Well, I, uh, used spirit to compel Rose to ignore the bond and think that everything was normal through the bond.” I raised my eyebrows at her. “Oh?” was all I could say.  
I slouched forward and rested my elbows on the breakfast bar. Dimitri placed a soothing hand on my back and spoke for me again, “Why didn’t you just tell Rose? Why go through so much trouble to keep it from her?” Lissa leaned forward to place a hand over mine and squeeze comfortingly. “I knew Rose wouldn’t approve of me using spirit for this. Especially when Wade started injuring himself. I also kept it secret so that Rose wouldn’t get her hopes up,” Lissa squeezed my hand again.  
I glared at her, “You’re right. I wouldn’t have approved of you healing Wade left and right. Especially if he’s some weird psychotic masochist. I especially don’t approve of you compelling me.” Lissa shook her head, “Wade’s normal. He’s not a psychopath. Like I said earlier, he just doesn’t know much about the dangers of spirit and had too much faith in my abilities.”  
I gritted my teeth, “Okay. Fine. You didn’t really care about the financial cost of the novice equipment, did you? You were just worried about the test result. And the darkness was building up because you’ve been compelling me for two months while healing broken arms and stab wounds. How are you feeling?” My question sounded more like a challenge. I was quickly getting a sharp edge to my voice, but I didn’t care. Lissa sighed and took her hand off of mine, “I knew what I was doing Rose. I didn’t do all of the healings, Sonya helped a lot with spirit, and I had Christian. I wasn’t in danger. And I was doing this for you. You should be more grateful,” she informed me.  
I tensed and literally bit back my reply. My teeth sank into my tongue to keep me from yelling at Lissa the same way I yelled at Dimitri last night. I looked over at my gorgeous boyfriend, “Any questions?” I asked tersely. I needed to stay quiet right now or I might explode, Dimitri would have to do most of the talking. Dimitri flicked his gaze over to Lissa, scrutinizing her. “How do you plan to make people believe you?”  
Lissa nodded eagerly, happy with the new course of the conversation. “I planned this all with Dr Franke and his assistants. They kept records of every meeting I had with the Hernandez couple. Everything that was said and done is recorded and with multiple witnesses who are willing to support the couple if they’re doubted by the court.”  
My confusion was enough to cloud my darker emotions for the moment. “Why would it matter if the court doubted them?” I asked. Lissa gave me an are-you-serious look, “I did this so that you and Dimitri could have a kid, one day. No rush!” she quickly added on when she looked at my incredulous face. “But, Rose, the court needs to believe it’s possible for dhampirs to have children with each other for them to accept your children as legitimate heirs to the throne.”  
My mind was slowly turning to mush. All of it made sense, but was crazy at the same time. “And with a child with two dhampir parents already made public, it would be easier for the public to accept our child,” Dimitri said excitedly. Great, Lissa had officially won him over.  
I was still bothered by the situation. “Don’t you think the Hernandez child is going to be under a lot of speculation. People will want to study him. He could become a lab rat…” Dimitri sighed next to me but Lissa beamed, obviously hoping that I would bring the topic up.  
“I already thought that through. I’ve had two months to plan this, and everything is ready to go public. The records we have are enough to prove that the dhampir-plus-dhampir conception worked, whether people like it or not. And Wade and Taylor have already agreed to stay at court so that the pregnancy can be closely monitored by our doctors, and spirit users. I’m not quite sure how the public will feel about this though, so I’m having two guards accompany Taylor at all times during the pregnancy, and after she gives birth. The guards will stay with her until I believe that she and the baby aren’t in any danger.  
“From there on, the child will be examined by multiple doctors other than Dr Franke, and results of blood tests will be made public information. The child will have a biannual exam for the first five years of life, and those exams will also be public. After the child turns five, though, any doctor visits or physical information will be confidential just like any other patient. I think that if we smother people with information about the child’s health, and make sure his records stay public, people will be more likely to accept him, and they won’t have questions of their own.”  
Dimitri and I nodded along the entire time, entranced with this bulletproof plan. Well, at least I couldn’t see a flaw with it, but then again, I was likely to believe anything Lissa said.  
Everything was falling into place. Well, almost. I still had to deal with the heaping amount of spirit Lissa was hiding from me.  
“So what does this mean for us?” I asked, looking at neither Dimitri nor Lissa.  
Dimitri let out an incredulous breath, “For us? What does it mean for all the dhampirs?”


	21. Monopoly

Rose’s POV

“What does it mean for all the dhampirs?” Dimitri’s question repeated itself in my head. Lissa nodded excitedly, sharing Dimitri’s wonder, making me feel more isolated in my concerns. The dhampirs would be lining up to have children with each other, which would change everything. For centuries, so much of our world relied on the fact that dhampirs needed the Moroi to reproduce. What would happen to us if we didn’t need the Moroi anymore? I wanted to feel happy, and I knew this was what I wanted, yet all I could recognize in me was anxiety. Shock and horror crept its way into me as I stared at my best friend. What had she done? What had she sacrificed… all for me? I opened my mouth to speak, to tell her that she had to wait, that she couldn’t go public with this news, that there was too much at risk. There were so many things I wanted to say, so many reasons this was wrong, but instead I heard myself say “Thank you” in a disbelieving voice.  
Dimitri wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close, nestling his face in my neck. Lissa beamed at me, “Rose, there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you. I owe you so much more than this.” I shudder ran through me as I thought of what more could be.  
I was at a loss on how to handle the situation. As the dhampir princess, should I encourage my people to seek out this happiness, or should I do everything I can to stop it, and destroy any chance this news has at disrupting our way of life? And… oh no… Lissa. What does this mean for her and the other spirit users? They would be used and abused for their powers.  
Lissa reached for my hand, making me jump slightly in Dimitri’s embrace. She smiled warmly at me, as if the bond was reversed and she could see into my head. “It’s going to be okay,” she spoke softly, comfortingly, “It’s going to be worth it, believe me.”  
I let out a sigh, forcing a smile onto my face, “I can’t remember the last time everything was okay, Liss. But… yes, it’s usually worth it.” Lissa grinned at me and sent warm vibes through the bond. As I looked at my best friend and felt my boyfriend’s arm around me I felt my fear and even guilt turn into a hard resolve. We were going to change the world, for better or for worse. No one else but us could have done it.  
I daintily picked at the food in front of me, not caring that it was Dimitri’s food. “So…” I asked awkwardly, “when do we make the announcement?” Lissa pursed her lips, looking uncertain for the first time this morning. “Not yet. We need to make sure Taylor carries the… fetus to at least the second trimester. We can’t make a spectacle of it and then have it turn into a miscarriage. Listen… I don’t want to let you guys down, but so far all we’ve proven is that two dhampirs can conceive. We don’t know if Taylor’s body will accept or reject the pregnancy yet.”  
I sucked in a deep breath. I hadn’t thought of that, but of course, Lissa had. “I understand,” Dimitri said, tightening his arm around me. That was one topic I’d rather think about without the extra company. I continued picking at Dimitri’s unfinished breakfast to help me keep my mind from spinning out of control again. I noticed Lissa tilting her head to the side out of the corner of my eye. Do you want to talk about it? she asked through the bond. Instead of answering her, I put on another forced smile and clapped my hands together, “Well this has been an interesting morning, but not fun at all-”  
“Not at all?” Dimitri asked with one eyebrow arched, and I recalled our early morning makeup session. I smiled, a real one this time. “You knew what I meant. Anyway, I want to do something fun that doesn’t involve dhampir babies and politics. Do we have any meetings today?” Lissa shook her head. “Perfect. Let’s have some fun!”  
Lissa tilted her head back and groaned, “What did you have in mind for ‘fun’? Because you and I might have different ideas of a good time.”  
“Nonsense, we’re going to invite Christian and anyone else we can think of to play Monopoly with a kick.”  
“With a kick?” Dimitri asked.  
“It’s the best way to play! Every time you pass Go or land on your own property, you have to take a shot. Or, if you don’t have alcohol, you have to do a dare from the person who landed on your property last.” I involuntarily smiled at the stupid things I would do while playing this game. Most of the time Mason and I would take it too far and everyone else would quit the game early. I narrowed my eyes at Dimitri, “You’re not scared, are you?”  
“Hell no. I’m in.”  
“I’ll call Christian,” Lissa said and left the kitchen as she pulled out her phone. I turned to Lissa’s guards standing in the room, “You’re all welcome to play. The apartment will stay locked, and we’ll all be in the same room.” They all looked at each other, deciding together without using words. “We’ll take turns, so one of us will always be standing by the door.”  
I didn’t think that was necessary, but I didn’t argue it either. That was how the guardians were. That’s how I would have been. I nodded in agreement. “Okay, so it’s you, me, Lissa and Christian, two guardians at a time, and… let’s invite… uh,” I sat there trying to think of people I was close enough with to invite. Sonya and Mikhail were on vacation together, Eddie and Adrian were still in California, Ambrose worked during the day…  
“Why don’t you call your parents?” Dimitri suggested. I gave him a sidelong look, “Play Monopoly with a kick with my parents?” It sounded ridiculous. Dimitri gave me an exasperated look, “Or just play regular Monopoly with your parents.” I shrugged reluctantly, “Okay.” I pulled my phone out of my pocket and tapped the screen to call my mom first. It rang only two times before she picked up, “Rose, is everything okay?”  
I smiled despite myself, “Chill, mom. Can’t I call you without there being an emergency?” There was a long pause which made my joke fall flat. “Yes,” she said hesitantly, “of course. How are you?” I bit my lip to stop from laughing. As depressing as our relationship could be, her awkwardness around me was sometimes comical. “I’m fine. I was actually calling to see if you could come play monopoly with me and Dimitri. Lissa and Christian will be here, too.”  
There was silence for a beat too long. I could only imagine the shock on my mom’s face at being invited to my apartment (when there wasn’t a large party). “Sure, I have some time today. Will your father be there?” I detected hopefulness in her voice when she mentioned Abe, which made it harder and harder not to laugh through the phone. “I don’t know yet, I called you first.”  
My mom told me she would be over soon, and that she would invite Abe herself. I found Dimitri, Lissa, and one guard in the living room, lounging on the couch and watching TV with the remote in Dimitri’s hand. “So where’d you get the idea to invite my parents?” I asked, trying to appear as casual as possible. Dimitri simply shrugged, “Is it wrong for me to want to spend time with my future in-laws?”  
Lissa made a barely suppressed squealing noise and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at her. I hid a smile and crossed my arms over my chest, “You seem pretty sure that they’re going to be your in-laws. I think you forgot that I have to agree to marrying you first.”  
Dimitri grinned as he pressed the mute button to give me his full attention, “Rose, I think I need to convince your father that I’m worthy first. I don’t want to lose any limbs for not being in his good graces when I propose.”  
Lissa and I laughed, and I thought I heard the guard in the room cough to hide his laughter. I was relieved that the words marriage and proposal didn’t scare me as much anymore. I would probably freak out if words like pregnancy and baby were brought up though. I sat next to Dimitri, making sure I was as close to him as humanly possible. “Don’t worry comrade, he’d have to go through me first.” Dimitri brought his lips down to mine, pressing softly, “Well, then I should just propose right now.”  
I smacked his arm, “No! No, no, no,” as stern as I attempted to sound I couldn’t help my smile. “Not until I can legally drink, that’s the deal.”  
“Wait, I thought the deal was to wait until you were twenty? You’re pushing it back now?” Dimitri cocked one eyebrow, I could see the smile slowly faded from his face. I shrugged. “Twenty, twenty-one. It doesn’t matter to me, because I’m not walking down the aisle until I’m thirty anyways,” I stated proudly.  
Dimitri shook his head and sighed, effectively ended the conversation. I squeezed his hand reassuringly and pecked him on the cheek. “Ugh,” Lissa groaned, “that’s enough PDA for a while.”  
“Fine,” I said, just as there was a knock on the door. I grinned, “It’s time to play.”  
*****************************************  
“Abe, it’s your turn to roll.”  
“Hm? Oh, sorry.” He picked up the die and rolled. All night he had been glancing between Lissa and myself; studying us. It didn’t take long for me to figure out that he knew something he wasn’t supposed to, and I started to think inviting over was a bad idea.  
“Park Place! Crap,” Christian grumbled as Abe counted his fake money to buy the property. “Sorry son, I can’t pass up the chance to own one of the best properties on the board. It would be foolish to pass up a great opportunity.” Abe looked at me, piercing me with a fierce gaze that no one else noticed. They were all invested in the game, too wrapped up to consider the double meaning in my father’s words.  
I raised my eyebrows, feining confusion, “It’s just a game, old man. You’re making it sound like lives are at stake.”  
Abe shrugged, still giving me a serious look, “If you are not careful, there could be lives at stake.”  
Everyone laughed at that, and I did my best to join in. Whatever Abe was up to, I didn’t want to deal with it now. It was my turn next, and I took the chance to throw myself into the game. I landed on Boardwalk, the only other dark blue property. “Well, it looks like Abe the mob boss won’t get to put any hotels on his beloved Park Place. Christian, can you hand me Boardwalk?” I held out the fake money.  
Abe gave me a tight smile, “That’s quite alright, dear. It wouldn’t be right to have a monopoly on important things. Why deny others the chance to be happy?”  
Now everyone in the room was aware of some tension. I stared at him, trying to figure out what he doing here. He turned to Lissa, tapping the “Get Out of Jail Free” card in her pile, “You might need this soon, knowing how much trouble you and Rose can cause. To you, this is a game, but to others, it is much more.”  
I took in a deep breath, realizing that my dad somehow knew about Taylor’s pregnancy. And, for some reason, he’s upset that we haven’t gone public yet. I know my father never had the upmost respect for politics, but now he was challenging me. Couldn’t he stay out of something that had nothing to do with him for once?  
Christian snorted, “Much more? I don’t know about you, but I’m not making any bets here, so it’s just a game.” I leaned forward, “Dad, I just want to play a game of monopoly right now, can you stop acting all dramatic?”  
He nodded with a tight smile on his face. “Okay,” my mom said hesitantly and picked up the die to roll. As soon as she started her turn Dimitri leaned in to whisper to me, “What the hell was that?”  
I turned to peck him on the cheek quickly, to hide the fact that I was whispering to him, “My dad knows about Taylor. I don’t know how.” Then I turned back to the game like nothing happened. Through the bond I could feel Lissa’s anxiety, so she had figured it out too.  
I nearly jumped when Dimitri placed a hand on my back. He leaned forward again, not trying to hide his whispers at all, “Don’t worry, they’ll all know soon enough anyway. We might as well just say it out loud.” He rubbed soothing circles into my back. When I looked at him he gave me a small nod of encouragement.  
I bit my lip and looked to Lissa, who was already regarding me. I raised my eyebrows in question. She already knew what I was going to ask so she just nodded. I sighed and stood up, “Alright guys, we need to talk.” My dad was in the middle of moving his piece across the board, but he let it go and sat back with a triumphant look on his face.  
I looked at my mom, and her poor, confused face. She was the only one in this room who didn’t know yet. “I don’t really know how to ease you into this,” I said to her. Her expression immediately turned worried at my tone. “But, uh, there’s a dhampir couple who managed to… get pregnant.”  
My mom gasped, “What? Are you serious?!” She looked at my stomach before glaring at Dimitri. He didn’t shrink under her gaze, but I could tell he was uncomfortable. I involuntarily wrapped my arms around me stomach. “No, mom, it’s not us. It’s another couple who volunteered.” My mom tore her glare from Dimitri back to me, looking relieved, “What do you mean, volunteered?”  
I gestured to Lissa, “She can explain it best.” I flopped down on the couch. Lissa sat up straighter now that everyone was looking at her. She gave them the same speech that she gave Dimitri and I that morning. My mom asked most of the questions, my dad even asked some. I listened to my problems du jour for the second time that day.  
At some point I spaced out and started daydreaming of the ideal vacation spot. Just me and Dimitri, all alone on some remote island where I could wear bikinis.The two of us wouldn’t talk about marriage or babies or court at all. We would go swimming and make out in the water. We would get drunk and dance with large crowds of tourists. And the sex. Any vacation worth its while would involve a lot of sex from my Russian god. We would have sex every chance we had, gloriously infertile for a while longer. The more I thought about it the more I wanted this vacation. Damn.  
Sadly, I wasn’t in the Bahamas or someplace equally as exciting. I was here, where I couldn’t get dhampir babies off my mind, not even during make-up sex this morning. I let my daydream slip away as I focused on the conversation happening in front of me.  
“So what happens when you come public and other dhampir couples want in? Will you just deny them the chance to have children?” Abe inquired. Before Lissa had the chance to answer he was talking again, using his condescending mobster voice. “You can’t just tell dhampirs they’re not allowed to have children after you’ve discovered that it’s possible. If you don’t find a way to offer spirit to them, they will seek it out themselves.”  
“Don’t you think we know that?” I snapped. “Listen, dad, you may have your opinions on this, but Lissa and I have been thinking about this for a long time,” I lied. “We don’t know how we’re going to handle the other dhampir couples, but we have almost three months before we need to have a plan. This is strictly politics, it doesn’t concern you.”  
We stared at each other for a long time, nobody in the room was speaking. My dad could be a mob boss and keep his secret connections and threaten important people, but I couldn’t let him doubt me or Lissa. He could either support me or walk away from this topic and never bring it up again. Hopefully he understood that. Abe broke away from the staring first, covering his forehead with his hand. “Fine,” he mumbled.  
I nodded and picked up the die, holding them out to Abe. “It’s your turn to make a move, old man.”


	22. The Sisters

Tasha’s POV

I watched in disgust and fascination as Randall finished off his prey. She stopped whimpering a long time ago, and I’m sure that her pulse had stopped, too. I studied her pale face. The victim had brown hair and brown eyes, just like Randall’s last meal. In fact, all of his victims have had brown hair. Most of them also had brown eyes. Randall played with them, and often hurt them before he ate. To him, they were all a warmup for Rose.  
Randall and his Moroi helpers, whose names were still a secret to me, bribed Rufus Tarus into breaking me out of prison. I asked him to get Ethan out too, but Rufus refused, saying Randall only wanted me. I never cared too much for Ethan, but I felt guilty for leaving him there. I cried myself to sleep the night he was executed for conspiring against the throne. A crime I was even more guilty of, but here I stood.  
For the past few months Randall has kept me close to him, stashing me away in a hotel room during the day and bringing me along when he hunted at night. I never got why he wanted me to watch him feed on his victims, but I wasn’t about to argue something stupid like that with someone as explosive as Randall.  
On these hunts, Randall would tell me news from court that he got from his Moroi sources. Mostly about Rose. I only feigned interest in her daily activities because Dimitri would be with her for all of it. But Randall was different. He seemed obsessed with Rose, at times he appeared to be in awe of her. Court gossip is that Princess Hathaway and Guardian Belikov are secretly engaged, and they will announce the engagement at the annual Royal Ball held by the queen. I knew better than to listen to gossip like that, but if rumors were spreading like that it meant that they were very serious together. The urge to go back and get Dimitri into my arms was an itch that I hadn’t been able to scratch for years.  
The moon basked down on us. Randall told me that the moon was as bright as the sun to a Strigoi. The more time I spent with him, plotting and sharing our mutual disdain for Rose, the more I thought of doing what Lucas and Moira had done. Maybe they had the right idea.  
I knew that Randall was only keeping me alive and relatively happy because I was the easiest, if not only chance he had to get his hands on Rose.  
I didn’t care that I was only a tool to him, because I was treating him the same way. Randall was the only one I trusted to bring Rose to a slow, painful and satisfying death. At first, my motive was purely to kill the queen and get Dimitri alone, but now it’s gone much deeper. The sly little bitch was going to get me executed. If I’m going to leave Christian with anything before I die, it’s the lesson I learned when my brother clawed half of my face; the Ozeras don’t go out without a fight.  
Randall made a slurping noise against the young human’s neck. He lifted his face to the moon and licked his lips; concluding his meal for the night. “Rose tasted better,” he stated bluntly. I scoffed at him, “Of course she did, she’s a dhampir.”  
“Not for much longer, she isn’t.”  
I took a hesitant step toward him, “What?” Randall kept his gaze on the moon, apparently not concerned that I could do any damage to him. “You heard me. She would make an amazing Strigoi ally. I’m not wasting skill like that. Rose is special… she has a bloodlust that she keeps repressing, but I can show her how to open up and accept that part of her.” I shook my head in bewilderment, too astonished to really be angry by his new plan.  
Then something happened that I wouldn’t have dreamed of doing in a million years; I laughed at Randall’s face. He snapped his head down from stargazing in a rush of rage. His hand moved across my face so quickly that I barely registered the pain. A smirk replaced his earlier glare. “Are you an idiot? No wonder your family hates you,” I seethed as I clasped a hand to my now throbbing cheek.  
I held up my other hand before he could do or say anything else. “Listen, Randall. Rose absolutely hates your guts. If she doesn’t hate you because of the kidnapping and torture, then she hates you for what you did to Dimitri and his family, and I guarantee you he’s told her about that by now.” I paused to see if any of this was making sense to Randall. By the blank look on his face, it wasn’t. I sighed and dropped the hand from my cheek.  
“She won’t obey you. Once she’s a strigoi she’ll kill you. Strigoi aren’t brethren and you know it.” The smirk grew on his face, he shook his head and clucked his tongue at me. “Oh Tasha, you don’t get it. Do you? It’s not just her that I want. I will turn Dimitri first. Rose will follow, and he will control her for me.”  
I blinked in confusion, the idea of Dimitri being turned again was enough to make me walk away from this plan, but I had the feeling that I couldn’t walk away anymore. I owed Randall a blood debt, ever since he arranged for Rufus Tarus to get me out of prison. I took a steadying breath, “You honestly think Dimitri won’t kill you either?”  
The grin that crawled over his face would give me nightmares till the end of my days. “I know that he won’t kill me. He can’t, not if he wants his sisters to live.”  
*******************  
“What are you doing?” I grunted as a Strigoi named Poubelle tied a piece of black fabric around my eyes. Poubelle was a dhampir before he was turned, and where he had a lot of muscle, he was pretty dumb. That made him a great henchman for Randall. I didn’t dare push him or resist the blindfold; my alliance with Randall only went so far. He sees me as an ally now, but if I become too troublesome, he wouldn’t see it worth his time to keep me alive.  
“Just shut up. Randall is trusting you to see this, but he’s not stupid enough to let you know where it is. He told me you were smart enough to not take the blindfold off, so I won’t need to handcuff you.” A shiver ran through me at the threat presented to me as a gift. I slumped back in my seat in the back of the van and resigned myself to being an obedient bitch. Ever since Randall gave me that cryptic message the anxiety has been eating me up about the Belikov girls. I wanted Rose to get what she deserved at whatever price, but I never wanted any harm to come to the ones innocent in this mess.  
The van started moving, the two Strigoi accompanying me were silent the entire drive. I felt the car moving at high speeds, so at least I know that we were on the highway at some point. I started sweating when the van slowed down, creeping through residential streets and pausing at stop signs. I tried to keep track of the turns the van took, but I lost track. I could tell that we would be at the destination soon, where Randall was waiting to show me “proof”.  
The only thing Randall could want to show me after last night’s discussion would be the girls. Dimitri’s sisters, tied up and weak. Daughters of Olena, two of them mothers, one of them still just a kid in many ways. My hands were shaking as the van came to a permanent stop and the front doors opened. I heard the sliding door open for the backseats at the same time as two hands gripped my arms and ripped me out of my seat.  
The Strigoi handling me set me roughly on my feet and tore the fabric away from my eyes. We were inside of a parking garage, the van was the only vehicle in sight. Right above my head, a fluorescent light flickered eerily. Poubelle’s nameless friend stepped behind me and grabbed my shoulders to hold me in place. From behind me I could hear a door opening, but the Strigoi’s grip kept me looking forward.  
My heart was pounding at least ten times faster than the steps approaching me. Randall appeared in front of me, his pressed suit and cutting gaze reminded me of Abe Mazur. Maybe Rose and Dimitri have more in common than I’d thought. Randall reached out and brushed a strand of hair sticking to my forehead away, letting his hand slowly travel down my face until he was cupping my cheek. “Tasha, I’m so glad we’re working together. I would like to show you how we have the upper hand here. Come,” he turned on his heels and walked away at a leisurely pace.  
The other Strigoi pushed me forward as a way of release. I followed Randall, with both Poubelle and the other Strigoi behind me. Randall led me back through the door he came in, then down an elevator to the basement. When the elevator opened I could already hear a female scream. Thankfully, the scream was full of fury and not pain.  
There were a lot of plastic tarps hanging from the ceiling that blocked my view. Randall walked through the maze of tarps with a practiced grace. How long has he had these girls? I thought. They must have heard us approaching, and the screams became louder. The girls were shouting in Russian, a language I didn’t know very well, but I could detect things like, “You’re a bastard!” and “Let us go!” I couldn’t see them yet, but I could make out their figures through layers of translucent tarp.  
Randall chuckled, “They’re so energetic. Do you think they get that from their mother?” My earlier anxiety was replaced by an anger I didn’t know existed in me. I have never been this enraged or upset with someone in my entire life. Not Moira nor Lucas, not even Rose Hathaway. “I never agreed to this! I wanted her dead. I never wanted you to kidnap your own daughters so that you could turn Rose into a Strigoi.”  
Randall clasped his stomach and boomed with laughter, but the girls had heard what I said. “Tasha? You’re working with Randall! You won’t touch Rose! We won’t let you!” I think that was Viktoria. I flinched at the harsh tone she was throwing my way. Randall shook his head in amusement and held a hand out in the direction of the girls. I straightened out my shoulders and walked over to face Dimitri’s sisters.  
I saw Karolina first, the eldest. She was sitting on the ground with her legs out in front of her and her arms tied above her head to the wall. She kept her head back against the wall in a facade of calmness, but I knew Karolina had a dangerous spark in her. Her eyes raked over me and I had never felt more disgusted with myself. I did this to them, I thought. Sonja was sitting in the same position, but she was moving around a lot more, continuously rubbing her wrists against the handcuffs holding her to the wall. She spat at the ground when she saw me.  
Viktoria was in a chair in the corner, both of her arms tied to the arms of the chair. She jerked forward when she saw me, as if she were going to lunge at me, but the chair didn’t even budge from its spot. I ran my eyes over all three of them, grateful to notice that none of them had open wounds or bite marks. They were a little bruised and scratched up, but that was expected of dhampirs who put up a fight when being kidnapped. “Traitor! How could you?” Viktoria screamed at me. I spared a glance for Randall out of the corner of my eye, and noticed that he was watching me, waiting to see what I would do next. He raised his eyebrows in question.  
I then realized that this was a test of my loyalty to him.  
I puffed my chest up a little so that I could look down on the girls, “How could I? I’m the only one seeing reason here. Rose needs to go. She isn’t good for the dhampirs, she isn’t good for Dimitri. I’m going to get rid of her like I should have done the moment Randall returned her to court. He is helping me with that, and so will you.” Sonja gasped and Karolina’s mouth twitched, but Viktoria just looked at me like I had just slit her throat. For all its worth, leaving her with Randall is just as bad. There’s no telling what he would do to them.  
I spun on my heel and walked away from them as quickly as I could. I needed to be away from them and Randall before I fell apart and gave my entire act away. Vika screamed at me as I stalked through the tarps to get out of the room, “You’re fucking crazy! I’ll kill you myself! You’ll never be her, you can’t replace her! He loves her and you’re just a psycho to him!”  
I let myself into the small room with the elevator and staircase, where Poubelle was waiting for me. I silently cursed. With the company, I had to hold my forced composure all that much longer. Viktoria’s words rattled through me. You’re just a psycho to him. If I let Randall do this, then she’s right about me. It only took a few moments before Randall followed me. He clasped a hand on my shoulder, “That went very well, I think. We should be able to get Dimitri and Rose here within the next two days.”  
I took a step back, and Randall’s hand fell from my shoulder. “Where’s Olena and Yeva? And… and the children?” I couldn’t even imagine little Paul and the two infants being help captive the way the girls were. Randall shrugged, “Probably gathering the people of Baia to look for the girls. I didn’t go to fetch them, I sent my men. I couldn’t leave a trail back to me, you know. But, Poubelle here tells me that Olena gave up her girls pretty quickly when he got his hands on the little one. What’s her name, Zoya?”  
I stared at him, my mouth agape. It took all of my self control not to punch Poubelle. “You…” I seethed, my voice barely above a whisper, “you threatened a six month old?” Images of Christian in Moyra’s cold and pale arms flashed through my mind. I looked at Randall and saw the worst time in my life being repeated. If he was willing to do this to his own family, I couldn’t bear to let him near mine.  
Randall smiled like he was looking at a child trying to count to ten for the first time, “Natasha, I thought we had an understanding. We do whatever it takes, correct?” I couldn’t say anything to that, because those were my words to him. We’ll do whatever it takes to get our hands on Rose. I had never regretted words so much in my life. I should have thought it through, I should have been more careful. Strigoi don’t negotiate. They dominate and kill.  
This, I realized, is how Strigoi worked. I was foolish to think that I could work alongside one without him letting his own animalistic desires take over. I did, however, know that pleading for the girls’ freedom wouldn’t help. As the pain subsided the guilt came crashing onto me. I created this mess out of my own jealousy and greed, and now it’s my job to fix it.  
I swallowed any more awful things I could say to Randall. I still needed to be close to him for now. Blinking back tears, I asked Poubelle to take me back to my hotel room. Once we reached the van he blindfolded me once more, making the severity of the situation that much more terrifying. I wiped my hands on my jeans, but they were still clamy from seeing the girls.  
Poubelle left as soon as I was back at the hotel I was currently living in. I went to my room with nothing in it but a suitcase and an empty bag of chips on the floor. I paced the worn rug of the room as I tried to think of anything I could do to fix my mistakes here. I tugged at my hair in frustration. Any chance of saving them meant giving up myself. I thought of Olena, taking care of her grandchildren, not knowing where her daughters are. I thought of Dimitri, frantically trying to find them and plan a rescue.  
After an hour I gave up on ways to save the girls without putting myself at risk. I had allowed things to go too far, and now I had to pay the price. I picked up the hotel room’s phone and dialed from memory. There were two people who could help me. I just hoped Dimitri hadn’t gotten a new cell phone. The phone rang three times before there was a soft click and his voice came in through the receiver.  
“Hello?” His voice was as warm and soft as I had remembered. All those nights in the bar playing pool with Ivan and Simone. All those sunrises watched from behind beer bottles, listening to country music. All of the nights I spent alone wishing I was with him. When he told me he wanted to have kids one day, and after that all of my dreams consisted of his baby inside of me.  
I lost that.  
I ruined it.  
All because I couldn’t let him be happy without me.  
I took a steadying breath to calm my nerves. No more cowardice, no more letting others fall for me. I was going to set this right. “Dimitri, it’s me.” I heard his suck in a sharp breath and the click of a door closing. “What do you want,” I could hear how the words were coming through gritted teeth.  
“It’s about your sisters, Dimitri-”  
“You leave them alone!” He whisper shouted. I could hear muffled laughter through the phone. I expected the hostility, but his words baffled me. “You don’t know?” I asked. There was a pause, “Know what?” I bit my lip, hating that I was going to be the one to make him suffer again. “I don’t know what, Tasha?” he asked impatiently. I sighed, “It’s Randall…”  
I heard a knock from the other side of the line, then, “Dimitri, it’s your turn for Monopoly… What’s wrong?” Rose’s voice became clearer and more audible, and I could almost see her approaching Dimitri with an ease that only Rose could perfect around him. “Put me on speaker,” I demanded, not entirely sure I wanted to do that.  
“Alright Tasha, spill.”  
“Wait, Tasha? What the fuck?”  
“Yeah. It’s me. Now listen closely and don’t let anyone else hear. Okay?”  
A pause. Then, “Yeah, what do you want?” I internally groaned at being asked that for the second time. “This isn’t about me. This is about Karolina, Sonja, and Viktoria. Dimitri… Randall took them. He’s using them as bait to get to you and Rose.”


	23. Family, Not Family

Dimitri’s POV

As soon as Tasha told me that she was staying at a hotel in Pittsburgh, I bolted from the privacy of Rose’s office, vaguely noticing the raised eyebrows I got from everyone in the living room. I ignored them and immediately went to the bedroom to grab a backpack and stuff some clothes in it at random. I could feel my blood pumping the same way it does when I fight strigoi, and I hadn’t felt this kind of fear since Rose was kidnapped in Spokane. If Randall wanted me then he could have me. I would come prepared.  
I could hear confused murmuring in the other room as Rose asked all of our guests to leave. “Something’s come up,” she explained in a tense voice. “We need you guys to leave for now.” I heard Abe laugh, when no one else joined in he cleared his throat, “Are you serious?” he asked. I couldn’t see them but Rose must have nodded. “What happened? Is Dimitri okay?” Lissa asked. The pounding in my head increased, and I could recognize Rose’s voice but I couldn’t make out any of her words.  
I stopped trying to listen to them, throwing all my attention into getting what I needed into the backpack. Shirt. Pants. Stake. Gun. Spare stake. Would Rose notice if I took her spare stake? Yes, yes she would. I packed that too anyway. I couldn’t think of anything else to bring.  
The bedroom door was hanging wide open, so Christian just walked in. “What happened?” he asked, seeming genuinely concerned. I gripped one of the straps on the backpack and carried it at my side. “Your aunt happened,” I hissed as I stalked out of the room. “Excuse me?” he called out, following me into the living room.  
I had almost made my way to the front door when Rose stepped in front of me, “What do you think you’re doing?” she asked with her arms crossed in front of her. Christian stood next to Rose, “Did you find Tasha?” I sighed in annoyance, ignoring Christian. “Rose, I don’t have time for this. Move.” I don’t know why I thought she would listen to me, she never does. Instead, she scoffed at me. “I’m coming with you. Just let me get a bag.”  
“Did you find Tasha?” Christian repeated, looking hopeful and afraid at the same time. “This has nothing to do with Tasha,” I snapped at him, then I turned to Rose, “You’re staying here.” I didn’t care at this point that Rose’s parents were seeing me getting upset. Usually Rose was the only one who saw me lose my composure. Damn, I thought, you used to have such a good poker face, Dimitri. Christian scrunched his face up in annoyance, “But you just said she did something!” Rose held up her hand to stop Christian, but now the whole room was in on the action, all of them asking questions at the same time.  
Rose reached for her jacket, but I wrapped my hand around her wrist to stop her. She narrowed her eyes at me and tried to tug her arm away, but my grip was stronger. I shook my head vehemently, aware that everyone was watching us argue as we ignored their questions, “You have to stay here.” I stepped forward, ready to push past her to get out of the apartment, but Rose held up her free hand to my chest to stop me. I let out an angry puff of air. “You’re my guardian,” she argued, “where you go I go.”  
“Call Hans, he can find someone to guard you while I’m gone. Now let me go,” I half ordered half begged her. “Don’t talk to my daughter that way, boy,” Abe growled, but I never took my eyes off of Rose, imploring her to understand. I needed to save my sisters, and I needed to know Rose would stay at court where she’s safe. She knew that’s what I needed, but that’s not what she wanted. She dropped her arms to face her father in a typical defiant teenager stance, “Stay out of this!” she turned back to me, a look of painful resignation on her face “You’re an idiot if you think I’m not helping. Do you have your cell phone?”  
I nodded. She took a steadying breath. “Good. Then I’ll catch up with you in a couple hours. Call me when you get there.” I was ready to argue again but she just raised her eyebrows and gave me a look that said you can’t stop me. A head start was all I could ask of her, and if it meant I could leave now then I was all for it.  
“Fine,” I said at the same time that Christian said, “I’m coming with you, Rose.”  
Everyone in the room gawked at him. “No!” Rose, Lissa, and I said at the same time.  
Christian threw his arms up in frustration, “My aunt is out there! I’m going.”  
Lissa started yelling at Christian about danger and not getting involved in my business. While the others in the room were distracted, Rose stepped in close to me. “I’ll deal with Christian, and their questions. Go now, I’ll see you soon,” She leaned up to kiss me. I allowed myself the seconds it took to kiss her back, letting her know how much I loved her. I touched my forehead to hers and said “Bring guardians.” Then I walked out the door. The irony wasn’t lost to me in leaving Rose to pick up the pieces of the mess Tasha made.  
The guardians at the garage were wary about giving me a car on short notice in the middle of vampiric day. “Where’s the princess?” one of them asked. I resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of my nose. “She’s with the queen. I’m running an errand for the princess, and it’s time sensitive, so I would appreciate it if you could ask the questions later.” I did my best to put on an air of authority, but I probably just sounded grouchy and menacing.  
They finally handed over a set of keys to a Ford Taurus. I was on the highway in less than fifteen minutes, and I began the almost 5 hour drive to Tasha’s hotel. One of the perks of living on a vampiric schedule is that there’s never much traffic at night. There was still snow on the road, but that didn’t stop me from driving 30 miles per hour over the speed limit. The sun would be rising by the time I got to there.  
The snow came down faster the higher up in the mountains I got, I was pretty sure I was driving directly into a blizzard. I drove as fast as I could with the snow slowing me down. Throughout the entire drive I had memories of Rose being held captive by my in Siberia playing over in my head. I couldn’t stop images of my sisters being used as food from entering my mind, and my grip tightened on the steering wheel until my knuckles were white.  
I realized that this meant I would have to face my father again. I hadn’t seen him since I beat him to a pulp when I was thirteen. I remember waiting up late at night, sitting on the staircase, waiting for him to come back for my mom. She would sit on the sofa in the living room those nights, unaware that I was still awake. Sometimes she would cry, and I would just sit there, listening to her sobbing, getting that monster out of her system. After what he did to Rose I had the same feeling that I did when I was thirteen. A strange sense that I never wanted to see him again, yet at the same time I was just dying to get my hands on him. He has now messed with every woman in my life. I wouldn’t even flicnh when I drove my stake through his heart.  
When I was about an hour away from the hotel my phone started singing “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World” by Prince, my ringtone for Rose. “Where are you?” I asked, not bothering to say hello. I could hear people talking in the background. “First of all thank you for telling the guards at the garage that you’re running an errand for me,” she said sarcastically. “That was easy to explain when I told them I needed to leave too. And thanks for taking my spare stake.”  
I rolled my eyes at her, knowing she couldn’t see it anyway. “Lissa and I talked this through, and we think it’s a trap. Tasha said she wasn’t supposed to be calling us, but if Randall really didn’t want her to tell us, he wouldn’t have let her near a working phone. Randall knew Tasha would call us.” My grip loosened on the steering wheel, in fact I almost let go of it altogether. “Shit,” I muttered in Russian.  
“Shit is right,” Rose said in English. I blame myself for Rose learning how to swear in two languages. “Don’t worry. Go meet with Tasha, just don’t go looking for your sisters yet. I went to Hans and got ten guardians to accompany me. We’re leaving court soon. They’re making me wait for the sun to rise for safety reasons,” she grumbled.  
“Wait, Rose, what did you tell Hans?” I’m not sure I wanted him to know about Tasha’s involvement. This was a rescue mission for my sisters, not a hunt for a fugitive. “I told him it’s a need to know basis, and he trusts me, surprisingly enough. All he knows is that someone is in danger, and there are Strigoi involved. He doesn’t know about… her.” Rose’s voice remained quiet. The guards Hans loaned her must be with her right now. I breathed a sigh of relief, “Okay, that’s good. Hopefully ten guards will be good enough.”  
“I have to go, we’re loading the SUVs now. I love you,” she blew a kiss through the phone. “I love you too,” I said. She hung up, leaving me alone with my thoughts again. I finally arrived at the hotel an hour later, grabbing my backpack and walking up to the reception desk. I went ahead and got a room, since I didn’t know how long we would be here, and there was no way I was sharing a room with Tasha. I sent a text to Rose to let her know I booked a room under my name, and she could get the other key when she arrived. Now for the hard part, I thought as I got into an elevator.  
I went to the fourth floor and walked down the hallway, looking for room 402. It was all the way at the end of the hallway, the door pushed back into the wall. I knocked and the door opened immediately, revealing the man I despised most in this world. My father stood before me, red ringed eyes and a grin on his face.  
“Dimitri! You came!” he exclaimed, clapping his hands together. I didn’t waste time in tackling him and going at his face. I wasn’t expecting him to actually be at the hotel, and my stake was still stashed away in my backpack. For now, I was letting all of my anger out on his face. He didn’t even fight back, he was laughing as I hit him, breaking his nose and drawing blood. For a Strigoi it wouldn’t hurt that much, but I’m still surprised he didn’t stop me sooner. “You motherfucker!” I screamed in Russian.  
Suddenly there was another pair of hands on me, not strong enough to pull me off, but I could feel them trying to get me away from Randall. His laughing had simmered down and he lay there, content to see what I would do next. “Dimitri, stop. Stop, let him go.” It was Tasha’s voice. I didn’t listen right away, but I realized I was panting, and I didn’t want to waste my energy if Randall decided to fight back. I stood up, keeping my eyes on Randall. I didn’t trust Tasha, I never would, but Randall was obviously a bigger threat.  
He stood up and brushed off his suit, as if he were straightening up before a business meeting. Already, I could tell that he was sharper and more cunning than his Moroi self. I guess Moroi Randall would have been intelligent if he weren’t drunk all the time, but Strigoi Randall didn’t need alcohol. He was sober now, which made him all the more dangerous. I reached into my bag and got out one stake. I still had two stakes and one gun in my bag that neither Tasha nor Randall knew about, and I would keep it that way until I needed them.  
“You’re tall, son.” he remarked, looking me up and down and smiling when he saw the stake. “That wouldn’t be a good idea,” he commented and sat down, his nose no longer spurting blood, but his suit had red all over the front. Tasha stood off to the side. My hatred towards my father all but kept me from even noticing her. She couldn’t hold a light to how I felt about my father. “Where are my sisters?” I demanded, making eye contact with the monster of my childhood.  
Randall shook his head disapprovingly and clucked his tongue, “That’s not how this is going to work, Dimitri. I want to see Rose first. Where is she?” He looked over my shoulder, as if expecting her to appear beside me. I clenched my jaw and narrowed my eyes. The glint in his eyes told me he wanted me to attack him again. He wanted to know that he still got under my skin. I couldn’t give him that satisfaction.  
“She didn’t come with me,” I stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Just give me my sisters.” Now that Randall was already here, my goal was to get information out of him before Rose showed up with her fleet of guardians. His air of ease concerned me. If he had heard any rumors about me, he would know that I was once a Strigoi, and that I was a ruthless guardian with an impressive amount of molnija marks.  
Tasha looked nervous though, which meant there was danger involved for her. My best guess? Randall had other Strigoi with him. I just didn’t know where. An initial glance of the room told me there was only one door to enter and exit, though there could be someone in the darkness of the bathroom. The sun was coming up in less than an hour, so any Strigoi henchmen would be camping out inside. The bathroom was my blind spot right now, so I went to sit in the office chair provided in the room. I know sitting put me in a precarious position, but this way I could keep an eye on Randall, the bathroom, and the door to the hotel room.  
Randall gave me an impressed look, surprised at my brazeness. “I find it hard to believe,” he started, “that Rose wouldn’t follow you. Shall we wait for her?” I shrugged nonchalantly, “If you want to prolong your death be my guest.” Randall sat at the edge of the queen sized bed, stroking his chin. “You’re sparing me for Rose to kill? How romantic.”  
I narrowed my eyes at him, “Don’t be a fool,” I said in a low voice, “I will kill you. But it’s the girls you’ve wronged that deserve to put a stake through you. My mother, my sisters, Rose. They deserve to kill you, but gladly I’ll do it for them. Who is with them now?” Randall gave me a knowing look, “Someone willing to kill them at my order, so I wouldn’t be threatening me if I were you.”  
I paused. He was right. Despite my strong demeanor, he had the upper hand here. “So what do you want?” I asked cautiously, already certain of his answer. He gave me an isn’t is obvious look. “First of all I want to see Rose. We’ll negotiate your sisters’ freedom after that.” He crossed his ankles, making himself more at home, and gestured for Tasha to sit next to him. She joined him, looking at me with regret written all over her face. I flicked my gaze back to Randall.  
The alarm clock in the room told me that twenty minutes of staring had passed before Tasha broke the silence. “Dimitri,” she said timidly, “I… that is…” she looked sidelong at Randall, who was watching her carefully. “Is Rose bringing backup?” she asked, but I could tell she wanted to say something else. She had a panicked look in her eyes that told me I needed to give a specific answer. She flicked her gaze to Randall and back to me quickly, imploring me to understand. I realized she was helping me set the stage so that I could deceive Randall. I cast a hesitant glance at Randall, playing along with Tasha. I did my best to appear like I was deciding whether I could say my next words in front of the company. Then I lied my ass off. “The queen would never let her princess leave Court, especially if she knew where Rose was planning on going. She’s breaking out.”  
I glanced at Randall to notice that his eyes had lit up like Christmas. He took the bait and assumed that meant Rose was coming alone. Tasha shook her head in disbelief, “Stupid girl, always rushing into things without thinking. If she had her head screwed on right she would’ve brought guards.” I tensed when Randall stood up, moving over to the window. He pulled the curtains closed, and I got one last peek of the orange glow in the horizon. “She is very rash, isn’t she. Doesn’t do much planning. She tried escaping me two times and failed because she couldn’t think things through.” He face turned pensive, “That could end up to be a problem. Hopefully where she lacks in brains she makes up for in obedience.” Randall looked at me, waiting for me to comment.  
I reminded myself that I had to keep up the facade, and couldn’t give away Rose’s cover. “She was more concerned with freeing my sisters than protecting herself. She may be rash but she’s selfless.” I squared my shoulders to show my father that I was only defending my girlfriend’s pride. The idiot was still buying into the act. He seemed pleased that I was defensive. “You and Rose are still quite close, I hear. There are rumors that you’re engaged.” I had heard the rumors. I thought about the engagement ring I had bought at Christmas time. I cut out a hole in the pages of a Leo Tolstoy book, written in Russian, and hid the ring in the book, where I knew Rose wouldn’t find it. Only my mother and sisters knew about the ring.  
“Our relationship is private, and certainly none of your business,” I snapped. This only amused Randall more, and he must of taken my reply as a confirmation of our engagement. “Nothing about Rose’s life is private, you should know that. She’s a princess. And even if the queen never coronated her, she would have been a celebrity amongst the royals, with a reputation like hers. Whoever she belongs to is a lucky man,” he said the last part like it was a compliment to me.  
I was about to argue back that Rose didn’t belong to anyone, but the awestruck look on his face stopped me. I realized that Randall wanted Rose more than anything. He didn’t care about me or my sisters. We were the pawns. Rose was his end game, because, I now knew, Rose was the one that got away from him. The one he thought would return. He lost his power over her when she broke his compulsion and he couldn’t stand that.  
I felt a weird sensation of anger coursing through me. Never in a million years did I think I would have to fight my own father over a woman. And despite the fact that I had been about to correct Randall for saying Rose would belong to a man, I felt myself growing possessive of her. My anger was only increased when I thought of my sisters being used by this monster to get Rose back into his grip.  
Then an idea struck me. If this was all about Rose, like everything else is, then I should be able to use that against him. I stood up rapidly, keeping my chin high to look down on him. “New plan. You take me to my sisters right now. Once I see that they are okay and not harmed, I’ll call Rose and give her directions to meet you alone. I’ll leave with my sisters.” I tasted bile in my mouth but pushed it down. I had to appear certain of my decision. Tasha gasped, but I could tell I had hit the spot with Randall. “You would hand Rose over to me for your sisters? Just like that?”  
I shrugged, “My sisters are my family. Rose is just my employer.” My mind was racing to catch up with my words. I was making this up as I went, but I still needed a way to get Rose in the loop before I let Randall make a deal with me. He nodded in disbelief, “And a great fighter…” He moved to shake my hand. I couldn’t believe I had just forced a whole conversation with him, and basically sold Rose to the devil. “There’s a transport van in the parking garage that will take us to the girls. Tasha took a risk in calling you, go ahead and catch up,” he smiled mischievously, “meet me in the garage in twenty minutes.  
My theory was correct, and another Strigoi came out of the darkness of the bathroom to follow Randall out of the room.  
As soon as they were gone I turned to Tasha, “Are we alone?” I asked. She nodded, “Dimitri, you can’t trust that deal with Randall. He wants to turn both of you. He doesn’t just want Rose.” I nodded, it was ridiculous but made sense at the same time. “I can’t believe he really believed that you would hand Rose over to him,” she muttered. I could, though. For someone as abusive and possessive as Randall the Moroi had been, it only made sense that he would think his son would be the same. He saw woman as toys, and thought that every man believed the same as he did.  
“Tasha, Rose is coming with ten guardians. Will that be enough to fight Randall’s Strigoi?” A small smirk played on her face, “I figured. And yeah, he only keeps two with him at a time. There’s six total, but he rotates them out.” I nodded quickly, pulling my phone out of my pocket. “I need to call Rose and tell her that the plan has changed.”  
“Dimitri?” I looked up from my phone to Tasha’s pinched up face. “Yes?” She sucked in a deep breath, and I almost groaned. I already knew what she was going to say before the words were out of her mouth. “I’m sorry, really. I’m so sorry. I never wanted to involve your family.” She almost sounded full of guilt, like she couldn’t stand her own company anymore. That made two of us.  
“You involved my family the minute you bit Rose. You just don’t get it, do you? She’s my family, Tasha.”  
“She’s just a girl!” she exclaimed, annoyance clouding her once grief stricken face. “No, she’s twice the woman you’ll ever be.” Tasha flinched slightly at my words. Part of me was secretly glad that caused her pain.  
“She can’t give you want you want.”  
“She already has, and more. Tasha, Rose and I are going to have children. Our own children. Not now, but Lissa found a way using spirit, and when Rose is ready, I’m going to be a father.”  
Tasha froze, taking in my words. I saw her world come crashing down, and I couldn’t care less. I gave my attention back to the phone. I could feel Tasha’s eyes on me the whole time. Rose answered on the third ring, and I gave her all of the details. I told her I wanted her to wait for my next call, telling her I would be saying things only for Randall’s benefit, and not to read too much into anything I said. She was to walk in alone, the accompanying guards would wait for her signal. Rose told me she loved me before hanging up. “I love you,” I said into the receiver. Tasha was still staring at me, her eyes were wet now and her lips were quivering.  
“You’re going to be a great father, Dimka.”  
The affectionate nickname my family used for me didn’t have the same warm effect on me it used to with her. I grabbed my stake and backpack, refusing to comfort Tasha when she brought all of this on herself. The only way Tasha could redeem herself in my eyes would be to help me get my sisters and kill Randall, and then leave my life for good.  
“Let’s just get my sisters home.”


	24. The Mission

Rose’s POV

Since the queen took a personal interest in helping me defeat the Strigoi stalking me, she ordered Hans to hand over his best guardians. Twenty-five of them. I only told Dimitri ten because I wasn’t sure what he would tell Tasha, and if Tasha was trustworthy with information. Plus, Dimitri would be more cautious if he thought only me and ten others were coming to his aid; I hope. Before I could get into the first of five SUVs, Lissa came running up to the garage. Well, speedwalking is more like it. God forbid the public see the queen running in an emergency. As it was, we were getting a lot of curious looks from Moroi going about their day.  
I pulled my hair tight into a ponytail. Standing there in combat boots, jeans and a cotton T-shirt, I felt like the old me. If the circumstances weren’t so dire, I would have been happy to see me in my good old Rose attire.  
The public didn’t know about the Belikov girls’ kidnapping yet, but nothing stayed a secret for long here. It was only a matter of time before the council found out that one of the princesses was leaving for a rescue mission. Hopefully I’d already be on the road by then. I closed the door to the SUV so the guards inside wouldn’t hear Lissa. She brushed some hair from her face, trying to appear composed. “I know you don’t have time for this right now, but I have some good news. I’m bringing Jill back to court. Today. Eddie’s catching a separate flight right now and he’ll meet you in Pittsburgh.” I stared at her with my mouth agape. I looked back and forth from the SUV. “Umh,” I blinked several time.  
A guardian handed me a holster for my stake. “Thank you?” I said distractedly. “We’ll have to talk about this later.” She nodded and smirked at me as I tightened the holster on my thigh. “It’s not often you see royalty in war gear,” she commented. I laughed bitterly, “Well, I’m not your average princess, am I?” We hugged each other before she was escorted away and I got in the passenger seat of the SUV. I should have been worrying for the girls, but I found myself wondering about my friends in California while we waited to leave the warded areas. Mostly I thought about Adrian, and if we could be friends at this point. I knew Sydney was with them, would she come to court?  
My mind couldn’t focus on that for long though, and soon I was thinking about those two weeks captive.  
I took a calming breath before buckling myself in. The moment Tasha told me what Randall had done I knew it was a ploy to get us to rescue them, but there was no way I couldn’t go. I clenched my jaw to help hold back the water building in my eyes. Once I got my memories back of what Randall had done to me, and his compulsion made me a slave to him, all I could hear in my head was You’re mine now. Randall wasn’t an idiot. I was afraid of Randall, and what power he had over me still. I was only safe from him within Court’s walls, but that protection was being stripped away any second now.  
The guardians connected the radios in the SUV to each other’s to keep open communication. Once all five cars said they were ready to leave, Jonah, the driver in my car, started the engine. My mind snapped back to the mission at hand. Dimitri was alone right now, and knowing Randall, Dimitri would need our help.  
My mom, Abe, Lissa and Christian were all still oblivious to the fact that Randall is Dimitri’s father. To them, he’s just a Strigoi obsessed with kidnapping and torturing girls like me. The guards with me only knew that three girls were in danger, and my power gave me the ability to order a rescue mission for them. If I wasn’t the princess, or if my best friend wasn’t the queen, we’d be left to our own devices. I knew the guardians were curious about our mission, and in all honesty they had a right to know what they were risking themselves for.  
Alexander, a guardian who worked at the academy when I was a student there, leaned forward, almost resting his chin on my headrest. He was a cool guy most of the time, I remember him breaking up a few parties in my days, but he always “forgot” to report the students to Kirova. “So,” he began, “Now that Hansie isn’t here, are you going to tell us more about what we’re doing?” I laughed at the nickname for Hans, glad that some of us had a sense of humor.  
“There are three girls,” I said, and all the guardians nodded. They already knew this. I looked around at all of their intent faces, these were men (and two women in the other cars) who dedicated their lives to protecting others. These were the guardians who had cheered for me and supported me in the early days of my controversial coronation. I pressed down on the dial for the radio so that the guardians in all the cars could hear this, praying Dimitri would forgive me for destroying his privacy.  
“The dhampir girls we’re going to rescue are Karolina, Sonja, and… and Viktoria Belikova.” I almost couldn’t say Vika’s name. Many of the guardians gasped, instantly knowing their relationship to Dimitri. “They were taken by a Strigoi named Randall Ivashkov. He’s the same Strigoi that held me hostage for two weeks before returning me to court.” I didn’t know how to continue from there. I took my finger off the radio button. I said everything, right? No. They had questions.  
“Why did he send you back to court?”  
“Did he take the girls to get you to come for them?”  
“Why didn’t he kill or turn you?”  
“What does he want?”  
“Do the girls know he also took you?”  
“Will he harm the girls?”  
I held up my hand to stop the constant stream of questions and pressed the radio button again. “First of all, I don’t know why he didn’t turn me when he had the chance. Or kill me. But yes, I think this is his plan to get me back. He gave me back to court in the first place because I was under compulsion, and when I crossed the wards I was triggered to attack dhampirs and Moroi with me. Lucky for me, and others, I was with Guardians Castille and Tanner, and they subdued me. We broke the compulsion Randall put on me. When we were outside the wards, we sort of ran into Randall’s partner and killed him. He might be upset about that. The girls do not know that he had me hostage, but he probably told them. He likes to play mind games. He loves using his compulsion,” a shudder ran through me as I remember Randall getting into my head. It was a thousand time worse than Spirit. Considering what he did to Olena as a Moroi, I wasn’t too optimistic about the girls’ conditions.  
“I don’t know if he’ll hurt them. I hope not.” I chewed the inside of my mouth for a while, considering telling them about Dimitri’s parentage. Was that important information? No, the guardians didn’t need to know that. They didn’t ask more questions, though I could tell they were still curious about a lot. I was grateful for their silence, and their will to save these girls. I almost feared once they found out the girls were dhampirs they would see the mission as pointless and want to turn back. But that didn’t happen, if anything they seemed more determined than before to get these girls home safely.  
Alexander reached out and squeezed my shoulder, “Don’t worry, we’ll save your sisters and keep Randall away from you, too.” I smiled back. I would have to find a way to thank all of them later. Jonah coughed from the front seat, “Um, I hope you don’t mind me asking, but how did you find out about the girls? Did Randall get a hold of your phone number?” I could see why he was concerned. As well as being physically strong, the guardians prided themselves in their security training. It would come as a blow to all of us if outsiders were able to get into court walls with technology.  
I bit my lip. Shit, I thought. I would have to tell them about Tasha. After all, she would be there. I know Dimitri didn’t want people to know about her, but there was no cover for her once the guardians got a visual on her. I cleared my throat. “No... Natasha Ozera told us.” As expected, the guardians were floored by this news. I started talking quickly to avoid their questions. I told them everything, how Tasha was working with Randall the whole time, and called us out of the blue to save Dimitri’s sisters. How it was all planned, and I would bet all my money Randall wanted Tasha to call us.  
“But listen, we’re there to save Dimitri’s sisters. If we can catch Tasha, great, but the sisters are the priority. If Tasha gets away… so be it.” The guardians gave me sidelong looks. I was asking them to go against their orders. Technically, Tasha was to be killed on sight. I looked around the SUV, but it was one of the guards in another car who agreed first. His voice came through sounding crackled, “Okay. Get the girls. We can do that. Tasha’s not the mission today.” My shoulders sagged in relief as the other guardians nodded in reluctant agreement.  
After that the car ride passed mostly in silence. No one felt like putting music on, given the severity of the situation. Dimitri finally called to let me know that Randall was at the hotel. There’s at least six Strigoi working for him. Dimitri set me up as the bait, and my guardians are to stay hidden until we need them. Randall will take him to his sisters, and they’ll call me with an address. I shared this news with the guardians, who weren’t happy about letting me go in alone.  
“You’re a princess! It’s our job to protect you.”  
I groaned with my face in my hands. “I’m a fully trained guardian. And not to sound like a bitch but I have more molnija marks than all of you. Pretend I’m just plain old Guardian Hathaway for a moment, okay?” They grumbled, their mood brought down by the order, but like everything else, they followed me. Their trust in me was kind of amazing. Apparently they thought the same of me.  
“Princess?” Alexander asked. It was weird to be called that by someone who had confiscated my alcohol in high school. “Yeah?” He gave me a small, curious smile. “Why did you tell us all of that? I know we’re snoopy bastards but you could have told us to fuck off.” Jonah yelled, “Language!” in a disapproving voice. I chuckled, “It’s okay. Alexander’s heard me say a lot worse when he broke up parties.” Alexander smirked and Jonah flattened his lips into a hard line. “I told you all,” I continued, “because I’m your princess, and you’re my people.”  
********************  
Alone, I stood at the entrance to a parking garage. Dimitri had seen his sisters, and once he was guaranteed they were safe, for the time being, he called me with instructions. Just inside the garage was a Strigoi waiting to take me to Randall and the rest of them. My guardians were waiting in bushes and behind trees near the concrete structure. I had Jonah’s cell number already dialed. As soon as I hit the green call button, the guardians would storm the garage.  
Eddie was here too. I barely caught a glimpse of him before he went to hide like the other guardians, but he offered me a quick wave and encouraging smile. I felt both relief and guilt that he was here. Everyday, I watched as more and more of my friends and family got sucked into one mess or another.  
Studying the building, I couldn’t detect anything out of the ordinary. The sun had risen fully now, but it didn’t provide much warmth in the late January air. Last time I saw Randall, he was in my head, using compulsion to make me see things and think things that weren’t true. For those awful hours before Robert helped me break the compulsion, I firmly believed everything he wanted me to. That I had to kill my friends. That he owned me, body and all. I never told Dimitri about the compulsion dreams because they never really happened, but I can’t shake the images Randall put in my head. Now I was walking into his trap on my own free will.  
I had to trust Dimitri that this would work. I had to do what I could to save his sisters. Steeling myself, I walked into the parking garage. The sunlight barely crept through the open slots in the walls. My eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness, looking for the Strigoi. I knew one was near because the nausea was rolling through me. I saw him when he moved forward. Instantly I recognized him from my days with Randall. He was always on the sidelines, never allowed to play with me like Randall and Vladimir did.  
“Hello, Poubelle,” I stated curtly. He nodded in acknowledgement, and spared a bored glance for the stake attached to my thigh, before turning around and walking away from me. I followed him, assuming that was what I was supposed to do. My finger lightly brushed the call button on my phone, not yet I thought. I have to distract Randall first. Poubelle led me to an elevator and wordlessly got in. He took me down to the basement, where all traces of sunlight were gone.  
The first thing I noticed was that the basement was filled with square tarps, the kind people put in walk-in fridges, hanging from the ceiling. They were everywhere, creating a translucent maze. Then I noticed the temperature down here. There was obviously no heating system, and I resisted the urge to hug my jacket around me tighter. As it was, I could feel goosebumps on my arms and legs. Poubelle didn’t move out of the elevator, but motioned for me to step into the room. He let the elevator close on him, leaving me alone down here.  
Well, not completely alone. My stomach was still turning, so I knew there was a Strigoi in the basement with me. I stood there, safe in the corner where I only had to watch three angles of the room, and listened. Even with my heightened senses there wasn’t much to hear. There was no water dripping down from the ceiling, or mice squeaking as they ran from holes in walls. I waited there for at least five minutes, unsure of what to do or where to go, or what would be waiting for me if I left my corner.  
My short fuse patience got the best of me, I couldn’t do nothing any longer. “Randall?” I called out. Holding my arms out I yelled, “You wanted me, so here I am!” Finally there was a sound; light footsteps coming my way. The nausea increased in me, one hand returned to the phone in my pocket, and my free hand moved to my stake holster, my fingers wrapping around the base of the weapon.  
Randall seemed to come out of nowhere, the darkness of the basement making it difficult to see him until he was standing in front of me. Despite all my mental preparations I was still shockingly pleased to see him. My instincts told me to fight him, to kill him, yet my mind was waging war with me. You remember me, don’t you? I heard his voice in my mind, and I was aware that this was yet another compulsion time-bomb; only this time it was set off the moment I laid eyes on him. I knew exactly what was happening and I couldn’t do anything to stop it. Looking at him, I could see some of the same features that made me so attracted to Dimitri.  
My own thoughts were screaming back, telling me it was compulsion, that I didn’t feel that way about him. But I was lost to the compulsion as soon as I made eye contact with him. I found myself staring at him, a sense of awe running through me. He was so powerful, and he wanted to share that with me.  
“Oh my dear Rose, it’s so good to see you again. Did you really think I would have let you go so easily?” A shiver ran through me, but I wasn’t afraid; I felt excited. The small part of my brain that was still like me was screaming out, telling me to hold the stake tighter, but my grip on the weapon was becoming slack.  
“Randall…” I whispered.  
STOP, ROSE! STOP! THIS IS FUCKING RANDALL, PLEASE RUN! I was screaming at myself, but my conscious was clouding over. He took a step toward me, and the predatory look in his eyes helped my conscious kick in. My attraction to him mingled with fear and the instinct to protect myself. I was silently begging myself to move, to at least press the call button in my pocket.  
He continued his prowl to me while I was frozen in spot. “Randall,” I whispered again, my lip trembling. “Please,” I begged, though I wasn’t sure what I was asking for. He grinned, flashing his fangs to me, and nodded as if he knew exactly what I wanted. “Dimitri is with his family,” he said, closing the space between us and bringing his hand to cup my neck. “We don’t have much time, Dimitri will come looking for you soon, but this won’t take long,” he said seductively. Before I knew it his mouth was on my neck, kissing and sucking the skin.  
My whole body was shaking, cursing myself for allowing him to do this to me. The other part of me was actually enjoying it, the same part of me that enjoyed being his hostage, the same part I had to silence to try and escape from him. I did it twice before, I could break his spell again. I concentrated on Dimitri and Randall’s differences, the warm brown color of Dimitri’s eyes, the way Dimitri would laugh when I did something ridiculous, or the way Randall didn’t find me funny at all, and the way Randall liked to punish me with his twisted mind games and stories of Olena.  
In my time with Randall, there wasn’t much physical contact. No, Randall had a much more powerful and enjoyable toy to use as a Strigoi. As a Moroi, he felt limited, because he could only inflict damage with his fists. I remember perfectly the day he explained it to me as I was chained to the wall.  
“When I’m in your head, you don’t know if what I’m doing is reality or imagination. That’s the beauty of it, Rose. You’ll never be able to wash me off your skin, because you don’t even know if I was there in the first place. You’ll always be mine.” He didn’t mean for me to remember that, as soon as he told me he wiped it from my memory, but it was returned to me with Robert’s help.  
Randall’s fangs grazed at the skin on my neck, snapping me back to reality. Images of what he did to me, both what he actually did and what he made me think he did, were surging through me, cleansing me of any attraction to this monster. I knew what I needed to do. I silently cursed, why did the plans always have to change on me? I couldn’t act rash, or I would endanger Dimitri and the girls. I had to be a puppet for a little while longer. So I ignored every instance in my body; I relaxed and sighed as dreamily as possible. “Are the girls really with their brother?” I asked, leaning my head back, making my pleasure seem as real as possible. Randall wasn’t the only one who could play mind games.  
“Yes,” he mumbled, his hand moving to grip my ponytail. SHIT. That would make it a lot harder on me when I attacked him. I decided to keep playing the complused-seducted girl to get more out of him. I could still feel the hum of compulsion in me, urging me to give in and let Randall do to me what he wanted, but it was easily squashed now that I was in control.  
I could feel my pulse speeding up as Randall’s other hand ran down the side of my body, feeling my curves, gripping my waist. “Take me to them,” I demanded anxiously. “I want to see them.” He let go off my hair and took a step back to study me. I left my one hand limp at my side; if I reached for the stake now I could ruin everything. I gave him a puppy-dog look, hoping he would see me as the helpless girl I wasn’t pretending to be.  
He sighed and pointed to the maze of tarp, “Anything for you, Rose.” I walked in front of him, despite it making me more vulnerable to an attack, it made me seem more trusting of him. He guided me through the maze, telling me when to turn left and right or go straight. The basement was enormous; we were walking for a long time before I heard faint voices talking to one another, one of the voices I instantly recognized.  
I could see their figures through the tarp before I finally reached the room, Randall standing right behind me. Dimitri and Tasha were sitting in chairs, and he stood as soon as he saw me, but I looked away, afraid of what would happen if I seemed too affectionate for him. All three girls were there, chained to the wall. There were four Strigoi in the area with them, and with Poubelle upstairs, there was at least one other Strigoi hiding somewhere. The girls all screamed out my name in unison, happy to see me, and confused as to why I was with Randall.  
I smiled at them, and I didn’t realize how afraid for their safety I was until then. Seeing them unharmed flooded me with relief. I turned to look at Randall, a small smile still plastered on my face. “Aren’t you going to let them go? I’m here now, you don’t need them.” I heard one of them gasp behind me. I really didn’t want Dimitri to have to see this. I still had one hand in my pocket, and I thought now would be a good time to signal the guards, but maybe we didn’t need them at all.  
“Not yet. There’s someone else who wants to talk to you, okay?” he brushed my cheek with the back of his hand. I closed my eyes and smiled more broadly, “Yeah.” He nodded, “Stay here then. I’ll be right back with him.” I didn’t have long to wonder who this man was, because as soon as Randall was out of sight the girls were shooting daggers at me with their eyes. I stood there, not making eye contact and staring off into space. I had seen plenty of people under the influence of compulsion, so I copied the distracted demeanor of someone like Clare.  
The girls were asking me questions like, “What’s going on?” and “Are you fucking Randall?” I flinched at the last one, but only offered a spaced-out smile in response. I could feel Dimitri’s eyes on me, studying me. The girls were getting angrier at my lack of response and their questions were getting louder. “Give it a break, she’s under compulsion,” Dimitri snapped. They all looked at him and back at me, jaws open wide. I slowly drew my empty gaze to Dimitri to take my turn to do the studying. His face didn’t tell me anything, but he winked at me. The Strigoi were standing behind him, so they missed it. I grinned broadly and started laughing, my way of letting him know we were in this together, and that I was grateful he was helping me keep the facade up.  
“You make it sound like a bad thing,” I chuckled. “What’s so funny?” Randall asked, his voice coming closer. “Hm? Oh nothing, Randall,” I called out. I turned around to the opening of the tarp. There were three blurry figures approaching.  
Randall stepped into the area first, followed by Rufus Tarus and his guardian. I was surprised to see him, but I shouldn’t have been. It all made sense, he helped break Tasha out after all, so he was involved in this from the beginning. I started laughing hysterically and I had to clutch my stomach as I pushed out air, “Let me guess,” I wheezed, “you helped kill the queen, too.”  
He offered me a tight smile but no answer. “Hello, Princess Hathaway. I hoped we could have a friendly discussion about your future, but that’s going to be difficult when you have guardians waiting to ambush the building.”  
Randall whipped his head in my direction, “What?”  
Don’t react don’t react don’t react I chanted in my head. Tarus’s guardian must have heard about my departure from court with twenty-five of his coworkers. Rufus smirked at me, knowing he had just tipped the scale against me. Randall grabbed my hair and yanked it back to force me to look him in the eye. “You brought guardians with you?” I nodded, using all of my will to keep up my composure. “And when will they ‘ambush’ the building?” I could feel him using even more compulsion on me, but I was able to resist it. I dropped my act and spat in his face, but he only pulled my hair harder, forcing my head backward, and I yelped instinctively. I knew I needed to give the signal now, or it would be too late.  
I pressed the green call button in my jacket pocket and took my hand out to reveal the phone to Randall, showing the screen that connected me to Jonah. I gave him a triumphant smile, “They’re coming right now.”


	25. The Stakes Against You

Dimitri’s POV

A watered down version of the events. That’s what Rose had told me. I could accept that; I could lie to myself and imagine it wasn’t as bad as the reality of it, but before me was something more awful than the beatings and feedings I had imagined. Randall stroked Rose’s cheek and she closed her eyes in contentment; the smile on her lips grew. The whole picture was very intimate. I realized then that Randall wanted Rose in the same way I wanted her; not just in a primitive, animalistic way either. My stomach knotted and my blood boiled beneath the surface. I had suspected he was obsessed with her, but I didn’t expect him to have… desire for her.  
Randall left the room before my faulty composure could snap and I would attack him. As furious and even jealous that I felt, it was easy to tell Rose was acting. I had seen her under compulsion before, and she definitely wasn’t now.  
Plus she reacted when Vika accused Rose of sleeping with Randall. This obviously wasn't part of our plan, but like all things, I decided to trust Rose and follow her lead. “Give it a break, she's under compulsion,” I told the girls. Rose looked at me, probably trying to see if I had also fallen for her act. I winked, the only signal I could give her that the others wouldn't notice. She started laughing at me, “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”  
Her reaction was so out of the ordinary that I thought she really was under compulsion for a minute. Then, just as fast as he disappeared, Randall was back with Rufus Tarus, of all people. “What’s so funny?” Randall asked. “Oh nothing,” Rose said as she turned to face Randall. She paused when she say Rufus, both of our minds connecting the dots at the same time. While Rose broke into another fit of laughter, I bared my teeth at the treacherous vermin, I should have seen it coming. Despite my aggressive appearance, Tarus only had eyes for Rose.  
“Let me guess, you helped kill the queen, too”  
Rufus offered a tight lipped smile, “Hello Princess Hathaway. I hoped we could have a friendly discussion about your future, but that’s going to be difficult when you have guardians waiting to ambush the building.”  
I knew immediately that Rufus’ guardian, Julian, had been the one to give us away. He was the only one who would have known that Court guardians were sent off with the princess. We were too blind to think of Randall’s connection within Court walls.  
“What?” Randall was in front of Rose before I could blink, I crouched instinctively but didn’t intervene, only because I didn’t want to turn my back on the Strigoi standing near my sisters. Randall had a grip on Rose’s hair, pulling it back to make her look him in the face. “You brought guardians with you?” Rose nodded, her face completely emotionless, she wasn’t even faking a compulsed look of awe at this point. I reached for my stake, waiting for Randall to lash out, but he only brought his face fractionally closer to Rose’s. “And when will they ‘ambush’ the building?” he demanded.  
My hand gripped the cool metal of the stake, I regret not using it on Randall long ago. Rose flashed a nervous but excited grin and pulled out an old flip-phone from her pocket, “They’re coming right now.”  
Randall grabbed Rose’s hand in frustration and squeezed until there were cracking sounds. Rose yelled in pain and dropped the broken phone to the floor; I was certain Randall had broken her hand, too. Without thinking, I grabbed the chair behind me and swung it at him, making him stumble, bending over to clutch his leg. I doubt it had hurt him, that his reaction was just instinct, but I still took pleasure in seeing his discomfort. Now that Rose had dropped her act, she had no qualms about kicking Randall in the face and sending him to the ground. This all happened in a matter of seconds.  
Before we could inflict more damage, Randall’s men were on top of us, trying to hold us back. Rose and I quickly deflected their blows, but it didn’t take long for me to notice that they weren’t really trying to hurt us. “Stop!” Randall shouted, now standing behind us. The Strigoi backed down and returned to their spots along the wall. I was about to lunge for Randall but Rose gripped my wrist with her good hand and pulled me back. “Don’t” she warned me. I looked at her incredulously, but her gaze was on Rufus and Julian. I understood why she wasn’t attacking; both men were holding guns pointed at my sisters on the ground.  
“My Strigoi will not hurt you, and Rufus will not hurt the girls, as long as your guards don’t attempt a rescue,” Randall warned, inspecting the bed of his nails as if he were bored. “It’s a little late for that!” Rose seethed. Randall’s anger flared and he moved in on Rose. I was about to step in front of her but she moved first, holding my hands behind her and squeezing tight, both for reassurance and to keep me immobile as she faced Randall. He stopped just a breath away from her, staring her down.  
“What, too afraid to fight me?” she taunted him. “Afraid I’ll win?” Randall sneered, bringing his face level to hers, his hands on his knees, “You don’t scare me, Rose. You will bow to me.” I growled at his insinuation, but Rose just giggled. Actually giggled. She shook her head and released her grip on my hands. “Oh Randall. You just don’t get it, do you?”  
He cocked his head to the side, giving her an amused look, like he was indulging a small child. Rose sighed dramatically, “Everyone wants poor Rose Hathaway to do what they say. Everyone wants to control me. If you knew anything about me, you would know that I don’t like being told what to do.” She threw a punch at him so suddenly, it caught us all by surprise. I smirked when I realized Randall had broken the weaker of Rose’s hands. She still had a lot of fight left in her. It wasn’t long before she got Randall on the floor again. He held up his hands to his Strigoi, preventing them from helping him. Rose stood over Randall with her fists still clenched, and spat on him.  
“I’m a fucking princess! You’re the one who will be bowing.” I’d never heard Rose sound so terrifying, but I liked it. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one enraptured with Rose’s dominant nature. Randall panted, “You’re magnificent.” Rose narrowed her eyes at him, but he wasn’t the goal anymore. She shifted her attention to Rufus and Julian; the elevator signaled the arrival of Rose’s reinforcements at the same time. We had to act now, before the guardians got to us and Randall took matters into his own hands.  
Rose glanced at me; in that single look I knew what she needed me to do. She flicked her gaze to the guardian next to Rufus and back to me and I gave her a quick nod. Julian seemed to know what was about to happen but didn’t have time to stop it. Rose and I jumped at the same time, she went for Rufus and I went for Julian. A gunshot went off, followed by several yells of surprise. I wasn’t even sure whose gun went off, but I twisted Julian’s arm to make him drop the weapon.  
“Get the girls!” Randall yelled. I couldn’t split my time between him and Julian, so I grabbed both sides of Julian’s head and brought my knee up at the same time I slammed his head down. He slumped over and fell on the ground with a thud.  
Rose took after me and quickly knocked out Rufus. By the time the guardians found us through the maze, guided by all of the noise we made no doubt, my sisters were in the hands of the Strigoi, Randall watching on. There was blood oozing out of Karolina’s left leg, where the stray bullet had landed. Her struggle was useless, seeing as she was both tied up and in the arms of a killing machine. Tears were silently streaming down her face as she bit down on her lip to prevent herself from reacting to the shot anymore. It wasn’t a lethal shot, but she would need medical attention soon.  
My sisters couldn’t fight their way out of this alone. Seeing the rage in Vika’s eyes, and the calm resolve of Sonja, and Karolina’s silent pain, made me realize something; this whole time I’d been thinking of them as victims of Randall, but they were all trained in combat and very capable of aiding us in their escape.  
A shadow in corner of my eye moved slightly, catching my attention. I flicked my gaze over to see Tasha. She must have moved over to the corner near Randall while we were preoccupied and pressed herself up against the wall. I had all but forgotten she was there, which is obviously what she wanted. She held a finger up to her mouth.  
I decided then that I would let her get out of here. I would let her stay quietly in the corner, and watch the pieces fall where they may. I wouldn’t call it forgiveness, but despite what she had done to me and my loved ones, I would not be the one responsible for her death. I looked away from her, not even acknowledging her plea for my silence with a nod or a wink.  
Randall held up a hand, his fingers in position to snap, and grinned victoriously at Rose. “I’ll hand the girls over to your guardians if you leave with me. I promise.” I knew there weren’t many ways out of this without innocent blood shed.  
In fact, I was certain any way out of here would require some spilt blood. As guardians slowly piled into the room to stand behind us, taking in the odd situation with their own eyes, the Strigoi visibly tightened their grip on my sisters.  
The whole room was at a standstill, other than the occasional guardian trying to push his way into the area, nobody was moving. Randall still had his hand up, looking imploringly at Rose. Soon enough, the whole room was looking at her, waiting for her to make the next move. I knew exactly what she was going to do before she even moved, and while part of me could admit the brilliance of her new plan, I wasn’t entirely on board with letting her walk into the lion’s den.  
She lifted her head up and straightened her shoulders. “Dimitri, Eddie, Jonah, come here please.” Eddie and Jonah stepped up next to me, “Yes, Princess?” we asked at the same time; it felt strange to use Rose’s formal title now. Rose licked her lips and blinked away her unncertainty before giving her commands. “Randall, bring the girls to these men, now. Once they are in their hands I will let your Strigoi take me.” Her voice left no room for compromise. Randall spared me a fleeting glance, narrowing his eys. His lips twitched, “Dimitri will come too.”  
Rose shook her head slowly, “He’s not part of this. It’s just you and me.” Randall’s only response was the clenching of his jaw. Eddie shifted his weight to one leg to whisper in Rose’s ear. She gave him a sad, wistful look and shook her head, “Yes, I have to.” She turned around to face the guardians, almost completely ignoring Randall and his Strigoi. “I’m going with Randall. It’s the only way we can settle this without anyone getting unnecessarily hurt.”  
The noises of protest from the guardians and my sisters were cut off when she held up a hand, looking just as commanding as the monster she was trying to deceive now.  
Her eyes shifted to the faces of each guardian in the room, sending a completely different message than her words. She slowly inched her hand to her jacket, where she smoothed down the material, showing us the outline of the stake she’d hidden. She gave us an encouraging smile before dropping back into her more serious attitude, “I’m prepared to make this sacrifice, and I demand you do not try to stop this,” she rolled her eyes as she spoke, sending her point home.  
Reluctantly, somberly, we all nodded our consent. Randall broke out in a grin, exposing his fangs. He brought his hand down and gave a sharp nod. “Then it’s a deal.” The Strigoi walked forward with the my sisters, each woman with mix of anger and fear for Rose displayed on their faces. Karolina was limping, she bit down firmly on her mouth as she was dragged. As soon as they were close enough I reached out for the one closest to me, Karolina. Eddie and Jonah grabbed on to another Belikova woman. The Strigoi let the women go, the one who held Sonja then gripped Rose’s arm and pulled her with him. She didn’t resist.  
I held Karolina close to me, whispering to her that we would get her to a hospital soon. Her skin was paler than usual from the loss of blood, setting me on edge even more than I already was. Karolina leaned on me, letting me hold most of her weight. I knew that as long as I had her I would be useless in a fight, but I couldn’t abandon her, and I didn’t want to hand her over to another guardian.  
As soon as Randall touched Rose she shouted one infamous word amongst guardians that called the room to action; Buria. All the guardians except me, Eddie and Jonah rushed forward. Rose had her stake out and went for Randall’s heart immediately.  
He reacted fast, though, and grabbed the nearest shield he could find; the figure in the corner who wanted to go unnoticed. He pulled Tasha in front of him just as Rose swung her stake forward. I was shouting now, yelling for it to stop, but it was too late.  
Tasha cried out as the stake plunged into her chest.

Rose’s POV

I couldn’t stop it. My arm had too much momentum behind it, I had too much fire in me as I came close to killing Randall. I didn’t even see as his arm shot out to grab Tasha, who was standing statuesque next to him. She was almost completely unnoticeable with all the other action in the room. If I had just one more second to register her face in front of me, I could have stopped it.  
Tasha screamed when I staked her. She let out a bloodcurdling sound, something I will never be able to forget. I pulled the stake out just as quickly as I forced it in. Somehow, I didn’t hit her heart, I would have felt the resistance as I pushed the stake forward. Randall still held on to Tasha, using her body as a shield. She clasped at her chest as blood spilled out, turning her white shirt into a canvas of red.  
“No,” I whispered in horror, taking in the blood that covered my trusted weapon. I quickly suffocated the part of me that wanted to cry out along with Tasha. I chose to fuel the darkness within me, something I never allowed myself to do, only now I had a choice victim for my violent tendencies. I honed in on the anger and rage, easily directing it at Randall. “How could you!” I screamed so loud I could feel the break in my vocal chords. I lept forward and clawed at his hand, ripping his grip from Tasha. I practically threw Tasha to the side in my rush to leave Randall shield-less. I punched him with my broken hand, embracing the pain and yelling out in pain at the same time.  
Randall tried to fight back, but he didn’t know combat like I did. I wasn’t concerned with a clean kill either, as far as I was concerned I could stake him ten-million times before getting his heart, and I still wouldn’t be satisfied. Still, he was sloppy, and left his chest exposed too much. He was fast, but couldn’t react in time when my stake went directly for his heart. A look of shock overcame his face before his eyes went blank.  
I felt only fractionally relieved when my stake went into his chest, piercing his black heart. His face fell slack and his lifeless body toppled over. I followed him down, ripping my stake from his chest only to thrust it back in. I repeated this, grunting with the effort and crying out, ignoring the throbbing in my hand and the ache in my muscles. This could have gone on all night, but someone wrapped their arms around me from behind.  
I jerked in the grip, instantly trying to defend myself until a familiar voice spoke to me, “Rose, he’s dead. Stop, please.” My muscles went limp in Eddie’s arms. Once he was sure I wouldn’t fight him he loosened his grip, but held on to me nonetheless. Randall’s mangled body lay before me, his blood splattered all over the floor, and I’m sure I was covered in my fair share of blood. There wasn’t a reason for me not to cry right then and there. My fiery rage had died down the moment Eddie pulled me from Randall, and only an immense sadness was left. Eddie lended me his strength as I broke down in front of everyone. The other Strigoi were down long before I managed to kill Randall; all the guardians stood around the room, unsure of how to continue.  
“Wh-where’s Tasha?” I asked. Eddie hesitated, but let me out of his grip and stood up. I stayed on the ground, my legs were shaking too much to stand, and turned around to face the center of the room. Tasha was laying on the ground with her head in Dimitri’s lap. He smoothed down her hair and said comforting words. I could see her heaving, the breaths too rapid and shallow. There was still blood coming from her wound. With my arms shaking as violently as my legs, I crawled slowly over to her.  
She had tears streaming down her face, but she still smiled when she saw me. “Rose, I’m so… sorry,” she coughed out, her whole body was seizing up now. I put both of my hands on the gaping hole in her chest and applied pressure, to hell with my broken hand. “We need an ambulance!” I shouted, but I knew deep down she wouldn’t make it to a hospital.  
She brought her hand to mine on her chest and squeezed as hard as she could; which, in her condition, was very hard at all. “Please,” she coughed, “please tell me… you forgive me?” I began to sob over her, letting my tears fall on her hand. “Yes,” I choked out, “I forgive you. Tasha, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” Tasha’s smile grew a little wider.  
Her breathing was slowing down now, and the blood wasn’t coming out with as much force anymore. She shifted her gaze to Dimitri, who was still smoothing down her hair; his eyes were shining and he sniffled. “I love you, Dimka…” Dimitri opened his mouth but no words came out; his brows furrowed in agony as he stared at her. Tasha’s smile faltered slightly once she realized he wouldn’t say it back. She took in one last, shaky breath. “Please tell... Christian... I love him.”  
Then she died.  
I don’t know how to put it more eloquently, because death is an ugly event. The smile on her face fell as she let out the air in her lungs and her eyelids dropped. The whole room was quiet, except for my sobs. I had killed Tasha. I was crying too much to see in front of me, even Tasha’s body became just a blur, though my hands were still pressed to her chest, her cold hand paralyzed on mine. Like karma, my own chest felt like it had been torn open, and I started screaming out from the pain.  
My hands had done this, my plan had led to it. Randall didn’t kill Tasha; that was all on me.  
Eventually the guardians decided we needed to leave the parking garage. I had stopped crying at that point, simply seeing nothing as I stared silently at the scene in front of me. The alchemists were called to clean up the mess, and Jonah barked out orders to get into the SUVs. Karolina would be taken to a human hospital nearby for treatment before being brought back to Court.  
I walked to the cars in a sort of trance. Someone was already sitting in the passenger seat of the first SUV so I climbed into the back. I tucked my knees up and hugged myself for some semblance of comfort. It wasn’t long before Dimitri joined me, closing the door softly behind him and wrapped his arms around me, but I tried shrugging him off. I couldn’t look at him when I spoke.  
“Don’t you have to drive the car you brought here?” I asked.  
“I got another guardian to take it for me. I wanted to be in your car.” His voice was soft, careful. He was on the verge of breaking down. He wrapped his arms tighter around me, his head resting on my shoulder.  
“Why?” My lips trembled.  
He looked up at me, I could barely make out his features in the corner of my eye but I still refused to look at him. “Roza, it wasn’t your fault.”  
Of course, I thought as my fingernails dug into my knees. Of course he knows exactly what I’m thinking. A sob threatened to break through me, just as I had started to calm down. I took a settling breath to avoid crying out again. “Stop,” I pleaded in a choked whisper. I wished he would just go away.  
He only held me closer. “Roza, please. I just watched my father and an old friend die. Please don’t push me away. I need you.”  
That did it. I couldn’t hold back the tears again. I threw my arms around Dimitri and squeezed him as if holding him tighter could alleviate my pain. “I’m so sorry, Dimitri. I’m so sorry,” I breathed between sobs. Dimitri buried his face in the crook of my neck, I could feel his own silent sobs racking through him.  
When we both finally calmed down, I noticed that Jonah had gotten in the driver’s seat some time during my breakdown. He looked at me sympathetically, “Are you ready to go, Princess?” I rubbed the heel of my palm across my face to wipe some tears away, effectively doing nothing to disguise my emotional state. “Yeah, let’s go,” I croaked out, my voice damaged from all the screaming and yelling.  
Jonah started the car and drove off. I curled into Dimitri; trying not to feel guilty about the sense of ease that came over me when I was with him. I must have been more exhausted than I realized, because I drifted off sometime during the car ride.  
The horror filled image of Tasha’s face when I staked her projected itself on the backs of my eyelids. I heard her screams piercing my ears over and over again, getting louder each time. The triumphant look on Randall’s face when Tasha took the blow for him…  
Suddenly I felt my whole body being thrusted to the side. I woke up with a jolt, coming back to the reality where Dimitri’s arms were still around me. “Sorry,” Jonah muttered from the front seat. “I didn’t see the pothole.”  
Dimitri cupped a hand under my chin and raised my face to his gaze. He used his thumb to wipe my cheek. “I can’t get her face out of my mind,” I whispered. He understood exactly what I meant. I didn’t have to explain my feelings to Dimitri, because he just knew, somehow. He knew that I would carry this guilt with me and there was nothing he could do to change that.  
He was the only person who would respect that, despite Tasha’s crimes against me and his family. He would carry his own grief, and I would be there for him. Looking into his eyes, I found a sort of solace; an acceptance to feel the guilt that charged my blood.  
“I’ve got you, Roza. Always.”


	26. Atonement

Dimitri's POV

There was a circus of people in full swing when we arrived back at Court. The SUVs sped along at the great speed of 2 miles per hour as we drove through the crowds. My eyelids were made of lead as I fought to keep them open. I brushed stray hairs away from Rose's face to distract me from the people trying to peer into the car. She wouldn't look at me, doing her best to keep her emotions hidden from me. I had given up on trying to get her to talk to me. She wouldn't want to open up with the other men present.

I couldn't stop seeing Tasha fall at the hands of Rose. She wasn't to blame for Tasha's death, but I have to admit it would be hard to not think of Rose as Tasha's killer. She saved my sisters, and herself. We did what we had to for survival, Tasha was just a casualty of that. Another tear threatened to escape so buried my face in Rose's neck, feigning a comforting gesture to her.

I felt Rose's good hand smooth down my hair. I wanted to sleep like that, with Rose holding me. As crazy as it seemed, only Rose's company could stop me from having nightmares of what she did.

"Jonah, take me to the palace," Rose said suddenly, her voice barely above a whisper. "I need to see Christian Ozera."

I looked up at her, "Are you sure, Roza? You don't have to do this." She nodded, still not looking directly at me, "The least he deserves is to hear it from me." I had no idea how Christian would react to losing Tasha. He was furious enough when she was jailed. Jonah spoke into the radio to let the other SUVs know of the change in course. A voice I recognized as Hans' replied, "I'll meet you there. Should I bring a doctor for the Princess?" Jonah met Rose's eyes in the rearview mirror for confirmation. She shook her head.

"Yes," I stated, before Jonah could tell Hans no. "Let Hans know the princess requests a doctor." Rose shot me a look, the first time she willingly made eye contact with me since we got in the SUV. I reached over for her broken hand and she pulled away. I smirked at her, my point made. Rose's hard expression softened fractionally, not anywhere near a smile, but it was a start.

There were plenty of spectators waiting for Rose's arrival at the palace. I will never know how word spreads so fast around here, and those of us at the parking garage had no idea what the Moroi and dhampirs at Court knew about the events of today. The rumors would be worse than the truth, and nowhere near accurate, I'm sure.

Rose was still covered in blood, more so than the rest of us, so I ordered a security ring around her; six guardians surrounding the princess to block her from view as she exited the SUV and entered the palace.

We were met in a large hallway with parlor rooms and offices connected to it. Once inside the ring around her loosened but stayed intact. Lissa was there with Christian, Hans and a doctor. Dr. Franke, nonetheless.

The Moroi all but panicked when they saw Rose. To a certain extent, she resembled her old self after being kidnapped by Randall. Though this time she knew exactly what happened to her. There was no way she could forget today. Lissa bit down on her lip but knew better than to berate Rose with questions.

Everyone was silent, waiting for Rose. Her gaze remained on Christian for a long time while she tried to compose herself. "Christian… can we…?" She tilted her head to an open door. Christian's entire demeanor changed. He looked confused, he obviously didn't know about his aunt yet. Rose walked over to the open room and Christian followed. Lissa gave me a worried look, asking me silently if she should follow. I shook my head. Neither Rose nor Christian closed the door, but Rose was talking softly enough that we couldn't hear them.

I watched, wishing I could do more. Christian's worry for Rose quickly turned into apprehension. He started shaking his head, as if he were refusing to accept her words. I had to look away once Christian leaned on Rose, crying out loud enough for the rest to hear. I fought the urge to close my eyes, I knew that the backs of my eyelids would sting with tears.

There was a loud smack noise that drew my attention back to the pair. The other guards were already closing in on them, I jumped to and joined the guards. I could feel Lissa following close behind. Rose was holding a hand to her cheek, Christian breathing heavily through sobs, his arm stretched across his chest from completing a swing. "Christian!" Lissa cried out, scolding him without knowing all the details.

I was hardly surprised Christian slapped Rose, but that doesn't mean I was okay with it. I felt a rush of adrenaline as anger towards him pulsed through me.

The guards were all going for Christian, but Rose stepped in between us, holding up the hand that had been on her cheek. "It's okay. Forget that happened." Rose wasn't upset Christian had hit her, she even welcomed it. The guards insisted on separating the two despite Rose advocating for her friend.

"Don't pretend like you care," Christian spat at Rose before storming off.

I didn't realize how much anger I had pent up until then; I just snapped. I caught up with Christian before he took two steps. I grabbed Christian by the collar and lifted him up so he was as tall as me. I didn't have anything to say to him so I just threw him down, taking pleasure in seeing him lose balance and fall on his ass.

There was a lot of commotion, the noise in my head mixing with the sounds of people yelling out around me. I could feel the threads of my sanity being thinned down with each second.

In the blink of an eye, the guards were on me, holding me back. They gripped my arms, Jonah standing in between me and my target. Rose went to help Christian up, extending a hand to him, but he swatted it away. He met my glare unflinchingly, showing me as much contempt for me that I held for him right now.

I closed my eyes to control my breathing, which had gotten out of control when I grabbed Christian.

"Dimitri," Rose's cool voice broke through to me. For the first time I noticed there were rings under her eyes, and her shoulders were sagging now. I looked back at Christian, seeing him on the floor was like a bucket of cold water being thrown on me. Shame coursed through me, overpowering the anger that was there a moment before.

"Don't take this out on him. You're both angry, so am I" she emphasized the last part for Christian's sake.

"Let him go," she said to the guards holding me with a curt tone. They hesitated but ultimately listened to her. I couldn't tell if she was upset with me or just upset in general.

Christian didn't waste any time in getting away from us, running deeper into the palace where he could be alone.

"What's going on?" Lissa demanded, looking to Rose for answers.

***********************************

Lissa had a considerably better reaction to Tasha's death than Christian did, I think. I wasn't in the room. Lissa had kicked everyone out to talk to Rose alone. As soon as they were done talking, Lissa told Hans a list of orders (that she didn't share with the rest of us). Dr. Franke wrapped up Rose's hand in a temporary cast before we were escorted to the courthouse.

Everyone had a job and was moving about to complete it, it seemed, except for me. I followed along blindly, feeling guilty for my earlier outburst and ultimately… useless.

None of the guardians in the councilroom were those from the parking garage. All of these guardians were clean and composed, a stark difference from the trauma experienced today. I stuck out standing by the wall next to my colleagues as the only one sporting blood. The meeting hadn't started yet, and Lissa hadn't announced the reason for the meeting yet. There were plenty of whispers going around the room, though. Lissa allowed this meeting to be public, so the seating area was completely full.

Many people were staring at Rose, bloodied and battered. I earned a few looks of my own, which didn't go unnoticed by the queen. Lissa made her way to me, two guards at her heels.

"Dimitri, I think it would be best if you went home and got some rest," she ordered, her voice kind yet full of command. Before I could ask why she was dismissing me, she leaned in as if sharing a secret. "We need to appear strong right now. We can't have a bloody guardian on display for this hearing."

I raised an eyebrow, "With all due respect, your Majesty, Rose looks in worse condition than me." Lissa nodded in agreement, "Yes, but we need the people here today to see her." she lowered her voice, "This is Rufus's hearing, Dimitri. We need everyone to see what he did to their princess."

Involuntarily, I took a step back. "You're convicting Rufus?" I asked. It would be a brash move on Lissa's part to incriminate a prince. She would get a lot of push back from the Moroi. The queen nodded again, a determined glint in her eyes. "Dimitri you can't be here. Not looking like that." Then it was over, her decision final. She turned on her heel and walked back to the head seat.

Instead of going back home I waited on the steps outside the courthouse. There was a full moon tonight, so I focused on that, not allowing the whispers and stares of pedestrians get to me. The fatigue was starting to catch up with me, but I didn't want to sleep. There wasn't much to distract me out here, I knew thoughts of Tasha and Randall would catch up with me sooner or later, but I wished I was back in that courtroom with the crowds and politics to occupy my mind.

Thankfully, my phone rang. It was an unknown number but I answered anyway. "Dimka?" it was Viktoria. I breathed a sigh of relief. In all the turmoil I'd forgotten Karolina was rushed to a hospital for her leg. "Vika, is Karolina okay?"

"Yes, yes. We're still at the hospital, but she just got the all-clear to leave. She'll be okay. The doctors gave her some morphine so she's pretty happy right now. We finally called Mama, you should have heard how worried she was."

I coughed out a small laugh, "I can only imagine. Will you be going back home then?" I wished they would stay here for a while, but I knew Mama would be more desperate to see my sisters. Plus Sonja and Karolina had kids to get back to…

"That's part of the reason I'm calling. Mama and Babushka are bringing the children to America. They don't want us to travel. We were wondering if…" Vika was using her sweet voice, the voice that paired with puppy-dog eyes. As the youngest sibling, she knew how to get what she wanted.

"You want to stay with me?"

She breathed a sigh of relief that she didn't have to ask the question herself. "If it's okay with you… and Rose, obviously." There was a hopeful tone to her voice, as if she ever doubted she was welcome with us. "Vika don't be ridiculous, you don't have to ask. Of course you can stay here." It would be perfect having my family there. They always bring a certain chaos with them; it would be a good distraction from all the death around us.

"You aren't even going to ask Rose? It's her place, after all." I tried not to cringe thinking of our home as belonging to Rose.

"Rose knows that dating me means dating all of you. She'll be happy you're coming." I hoped. There was no telling how she would react to this in the wake of today's events.

"Great!" Vika chimed, I knew Rose's approval meant a lot to my little sister. "We can be at Court in a few hours then. I don't know when Mama's flight gets in though. Sonja offered to go pick them up from the air-"

Viktoria kept talking about the logistics, but I stopped hearing everything when my eyes caught Rufus Tarus getting out of a car in front of the courthouse. He was handcuffed and escorted by three guardians, one of which was Eddie. Rufus saw me, and the bastard had the nerve to sneer at me.

"I'll have to call you back, Vika." I hung up without waiting for a response.

I had the rage, and a burning desire to end his life before the queen had a chance to sentence him. But I trusted Lissa to do the right thing. I returned his sneer with a smug smile on my face. I would sleep easier knowing that Rufus failed in his goals.

I'm not entirely sure Tasha deserves to be avenged, after what she's done. But I did know that I wanted that for her. Rufus faltered, almost tripping on a step as he walking into the courthouse, spectators watching in confused silence. I laughed at him before turning away and walking home.

********************************

I'd had three shots by the time Rose got out of the council hearing, only after taking a long, searing hot shower and dousing my clothes with bleach. One shot for Randall; good riddance. One for Rufus; he won't be a problem anymore. And one for Tasha; it shouldn't have turned out this way.

I watched from the kitchen doorway as Rose immediately went over to the couch and laid down, covering her face with her hands. "How did the hearing go?" I asked, putting the shot glass in the sink and stuffing the vodka bottle in the cabinet above the stove.

"Rufus got life in prison. The best we could have hoped for, since the council wouldn't execute one of their own." My hand gripped the counter top. That was the best they could do? I could think of plenty of punishments Rufus deserved more than sitting in a box for the rest of his pathetic life. Maybe it was time to call in some of those favors I was owed by my guardian friends in Tarasov. I took calming breaths before joining my burned-out princess in the living room.

I could push her to her limit, force her to talk to me, but I don't think either of us had enough energy for that tonight. I sat on the floor by the couch, my head resting by Roza's. Sitting down only allowed the fatigue and other painful emotions to take over. I closed my eyes. She didn't make a move to touch me, so we just sat there, being close yet not close enough.

"Roza, I know that-" I began.

"Don't. Please, comrade. Don't tell me it wasn't my fault." Her voice was still muffled by her hands.

"I wasn't going to say that." I opened my eyes and leaned my head back to look at Rose upside down. Our faces were only centimeters apart. She uncovered her face to stare back at me. She didn't say anything, just looked at me with mournful eyes. "I was going to say," I continued, "that you can't shut me out. I know you're hurting, but so am I. Don't leave me to deal with this on my own."

Rose sat up, her knees by my head, so I leaned on her. Like in the car, she smoothed down my hair. "Dimitri, I… how can you even be near me right now?"

"Simple. I love you."

"After what I did…"

"I would've done the same thing." I had a distant feeling that the alcohol was helping me talk right now. Otherwise it would have been too painful. I shifted so that my arms were on either side of her, my chin resting on her thigh. The hand that Rose had in my hair now rested on my cheek.

She bit her lip, knowing that her argument would get her nowhere. "I don't deserve you," she whispered.

I smiled, thinking how ironic it was that Rose would be thinking that, when the reality was that I didn't deserve her. I turned my head to kiss the hand that was on my cheek. There was a silent agreement between us that we were done talking about today's events for now.

Seeing her then, with grief and regret wearing on her, I decided that I would heal her. Not in the way Lissa heals, but I would do everything in my power to get Rose through the healing process. She looked at me, and I got the feeling that she was thinking the same thing about me. We would get through this together, though it would be messy.

Rose leaned into my face and sniffed. "Have you been drinking?" she asked, incredulous. I nodded sheepishly. Rose's face softened into a smile, "Well, it's been one of those days, hasn't it?"

"Would you like some?" I asked. Roza feigned being shocked, "Comrade, are you offering alcohol to a minor? I'm amazed."

"It's been one of those days," I repeated lazily. I don't know how much longer I could stay awake.

"Hmm," Roza hummed. "I don't think that's a good idea right now. There are protesters outside, I don't want to give them another reason to want to impeach me."

I sat up straighter, suddenly on alert, "Protesters? What for?"

Rose sighed and dropped her head, "Rufus supporters. They don't want to believe the crimes we accused him of committing. They're calling me a liar."

I didn't even notice activity outside the windows- because I never checked. I was completely useless as Rose's guardian when she needed my protection most.

"It's okay, I'm sure they'll get bored with standing outside the building," she said comfortingly. "There are some protesters at the palace, too, so we'll just have to lie low for a while." There was a small smile on her face. The smile was a beacon of light on this dark day. We would get through this, I had more confidence in us than ever.

She stood up and pointed to her shirt, which was covered in dried blood. "I'm going to take a shower, and you should get some rest."

As soon as she said that the doorbell rang. Rose groaned in defeat, "It better not be anything important. I can't take any more right now."


	27. Mind Over Matter

Rose’s POV

I groaned at the intrusive sound of the doorbell. “It better not be anything important. I can’t take any more right now,” I muttered halfheartedly. Dimitri jolted up, ready for action. He gave me a sideways glance, “Why don’t you get in the shower?” he asked slowly, carefully. “I’ll get the door,” he said, already in motion. I nodded lazily, heaving my body up from the couch. “Yeah, whatever. Can you send whoever it is away? Tell them to come back tomorrow,” I said pleadingly.  
I noticed Dimitri’s hesitation, he had a slower gait than usual, to stall opening the door until after I had left the room. I didn’t pause to prod him about it, or bother seeing who was at the door. I’m sure it was nothing that couldn’t wait.  
In the bathroom, I turned the shower knob all the way to the left. The shower stream filled my ears with a faux white noise. Steam had just started to fog the mirrors by the time I had peeled my disgusting clothes off and carefully tore the velcro off of my wrist brace. I entered the shower slowly, one limb at a time. The water was burning my skin, but I didn’t even consider turning the temperature down. For a long time I stared down at the shower floor, watching the red hit the bottom and get whisked away by the water. I felt the same sensation of calm course through me watching the blood fade as I did the day when I returned to Court without my memories.  
When the red had turned to a light pink on the floor, I felt my chin tremble. I’m washing her away, I thought. I had always thought I’d washed her away a long time ago. I didn’t even see her face or think her name, yet she was on my mind. My eyes scrunched up in an involuntary reflex to hold back tears, which only made me more upset. So I cried. I cried more than I did when Tasha had actually died under my pulse. I didn’t produce a lot of tears, but my whole body shook, until finally I trailed a hand down the shower wall, guiding my way to the floor. I kneeled under the harsh pelts of scalding water, now clear as it swiftly travelled down the drain.  
Images of Christian walking away from me came to mind, flashing like a neon sign. I may have permanently damaged my friendship with him. But Tasha started it! I wanted to scream.  
Christian and Tasha weren’t the only things bothering me, though. I was losing support as a princess. Queen Tatiana had given me this position because I was supposed to make the dhampirs stronger, more united. But ever since taking my council seat, I’ve only brought havoc and fighting to the Court. The protests that followed me home were proof of my failure as a princess. Clear as day, I heard Randall’s words from so long ago: You’ll be nothing, and when I give you back to the Moroi, they won’t even want you.  
Dimitri had to come get me out of the shower. I had stopped sobbing by then, I was just sitting in silence and not thinking too much but feeling it all. I shouted at him to go away, wanting to be alone. Dimitri’s response was to turn off the water, and the cold air rushed in sending a shiver through me. My brain clicked back on after being dormant all afternoon, and the fall back into reality was anything but pleasant.  
Dimitri handed me a towel with an apologetic look. “Our guests are getting worried,” he said. I froze mid-towel wrap. “What?” I asked, my head sticking out from my neck. I was wearing the stern I’ll give you one chance to take back what you said look that I had perfected over my term as princess. I usually reserve the look for arguments with conservative princes on the council.  
Dimitri gave me a pained look, his I’m about to tell you some bad news, and I’m really sorry look. “I said our guests are worried about you.” I stared at him as I processed this information. I think I was waiting for him to crack and admit it was just a joke, but that never happened. I scoffed at the ground. “Okay… Then who are our guests?” I asked with a fake brightness, the petulant teenager taking over the wounded dhampir in me. My eyes were scrunched up in a mock smile, as if indulging an idiot. Dimitri’s apologetic demeanor changed, becoming something more resolute.  
This was normal for us. These silent arguments consisted of me being a sarcastic brat and him getting impatient with my attitude. He usually won these types of arguments simply because, well, I am being a brat. “My family is here,” he said in a low tone, warning me without words to get my act together.  
Dimitri has gotten better about patronizing me, but when it comes to his family he tends to resort back to the Dimitri that loves to tell me what to do.  
I straightened my back. “Oh,” I said, taken aback. “Well, good.” I stammered, shocked and ashamed that I hadn’t remembered the sisters were all at the hospital last we checked. I stuffed fabric from the towel over where the towel overlapped on my chest to keep it in place and went to the counter, mostly to avoid Dimitri’s eyes. “Is Karolina okay?”  
Dimitri smiled at my reflection, “Go see for yourself. I, uh, let them borrow some of your pajamas, I hope that’s okay? I would’ve asked but you were in the shower and I didn’t want-”  
“It’s fine!” I cut him off, waving a hand and smiling. This happens a lot, too: us awkwardly patching up our fights by being as nice as strangers. It works because we can both see this as the apology it’s meant to be.  
“When did your sisters get here?” I asked, trying to sound nonchalant. Dimitri had that same pained look on his face from earlier. “Actually, they’re all here. My mom and grandmother flew in with the kids.” I raised my eyebrows at his reflection. In that moment he looked small, somehow. “They didn’t just barge in though,” he went on, “they asked if it was okay to stay with us. I just… well I forgot to tell you.”  
I took a deep breath. “Okay. Okay, good,” I said as I exhaled. “I’m… glad that they’re all staying here.” My words came out slowly and didn’t sound authentic. Dimitri nodded effusively. “I’ll let you get dressed. Oh, and they’re all in pajamas.” Dimitri wasn’t in his, at least not yet. “Oooh!” I cooed with forced excitement, “A P.J. party sounds fun!”  
Dimitri smiled again, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Then he left, and I was alone again.  
\----------------------------------------  
Olena Belikova ran forward to engulf me in a giant hug, squeezing the air out of me. “Spasibo, spasibo…. Oh, spasibo!” She was breathless, gasping to form the words. I surrendered myself to the hug, letting the older woman sway from foot to foot with me in her arms. Over her shoulder, I could see the rest of the Belikov family smiling adoringly at us.  
When Olena released me she took my face into her hands. I hadn’t noticed any blows to my face during the scramble at the parking garage, but I caught a purplish blotch on my left cheek when I was in the bathroom. “Oh look at you, darling. Are you injured?” I shook my head, feeling a bit dizzy under Olena’s concerned gaze. There was no malice in her eyes, only kindness and gratitude. I bit my lip, thinking that she should be more repulsed by me, ashamed of what I did in order to save the girls. But she didn’t.  
I realized that Olena understood what it was like to be a pawn in Randall’s game, the only difference was she loved him at one point. She pulled me in for a hug, and I let out a shaky breath. “I know… I know,” she whispered.  
Olena pulled away to ask me again if I was injured. I shook my head and laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation.  
“You still need rest, you all need rest,” she announced to the room. She sighed and gave me a warm smile that made my heart sink. She made me think of an army general, taking charge of her soldiers in a nurturing fashion. “Thank you, for saving my daughters.” She squeezed my arm.  
Everyone settled into the couches, suitcases and baby bags occupying all the free space in the living room. Dimitri had already dragged out the air mattresses we bought last time his family was with us. I opted to stand away from the fray, feeling an unusual sense of claustrophobia.  
Sonja was helping Karolina take a shower in the guest bathroom, and soon after I made my entrance Vika disappeared to the main bathroom.  
Any pettiness I felt about the Belikovs staying with us faded in the presence of Olena. If they had asked me to stay the night, I wouldn’t have been able to turn them away either.  
“This is a nice surprise,” I said while leaning against the wall. Okay, so maybe not all my pettiness. “You didn’t know we were coming?” Olena asked while picking up a giggly Zoya. Yeva raised an eyebrow at Dimitri. Ah, that’s where he gets it from. Dimitri smiled guiltily at me, “I forgot to mention it earlier. Rose had just gotten home when you showed up,” he explained to his grandmother.  
Yeva sighed at her grandson and turned back to me, “This is okay? We don’t want to be in your way.” I waved my hand in the air to dismiss her worries, thinking it was odd that Yeva cared whether she was imposing or not. “You’re not in the way at all.” Could have used some damn warning, though, I thought. As much as I loved the Belikovs, I didn’t enjoy surprise slumber parties (especially when they included three small children). I smiled reassuringly, all the while thinking unkind words toward Dimitri. I dismissed those thoughts right away.  
I told myself that I was just exhausted, and everything would be okay once I could get some damn sleep. The backs of my eyelids were throbbing, every square inch of my body becoming heavier with the second I stood. The energy I gained from scalding my skin was wearing off quickly.  
Before I knew it, Olena appeared in front of me with a steaming mug and handed it to me. I thanked her, not knowing the contents of the drink. A tea bag floated on top of the drink, the tag read Chamomile Lavender Herbal Tea. Something Dimitri bought for sure, I would never ask for something with a fancy name like that. I took a sip, letting the hot water burn my throat. I wondered if there was caffeine in herbal tea or black tea, I could never remember which. I practically gulped the tea down, savoring the heat and ignoring the taste altogether.  
Olena noticed this and took my mug to make me more tea. I bit my lip down, knowing that I should let her take care of me like this. I didn’t say anything, though. I liked having someone fuss over me. I took my time with the second mug, actually tasting the drink this time. I felt more alert yet also relaxed at the same time. I closed my eyes, letting the conversation around me turn to background noise.  
I felt a tug on my shirt and opened my eyes. No one was in front of me, I was confused until I caught a figure shifted below me. Paul was standing there, only half my height. He held up the Monopoly game board to me, “Can we play this, aunty Rose?”  
“Where did you get that?” I asked, already knowing the answer. Paul pointed to my office, and sure enough, the door was opened. I glanced at the other adults in the room, but they were all distracted by the babies. I didn’t know what to do. Was I supposed to scold Paul? I don’t think it’s my place to lecture a kid that’s not my own, even if he calls me aunty. I know Paul didn’t mean any harm, but an eight year old should know better than to open doors and snoop around in someone else’s home. Then again, I did want the Belikovs to feel comfortable here. And it’s not like I had anything to hide in my office anyway.  
Paul was still looking at my expectantly, wanting my permission to play the game. “Um…” I uttered. If I didn’t say anything to him now, Paul would think it’s okay to walk around my place like he owned it. If I did scold him, I would no longer be Dimitri’s cool girlfriend in Paul’s eyes.  
Kids are complicated. After a few more awkward moments of deliberation I gave in. Screw it, I thought, it’s not my responsibility to discipline Dimitri’s nephew. “I don’t want to play right now, Paul. But ask the others if they want to play.”  
Paul pouted when I wouldn’t budge, asking several times for me to join in on the game, raking my nerves thin with each time he asked. Finally, Karolina, having joined us a few minutes ago, noticed that I was struggling to stay patient with her enthusiastic son and said something stern in Russian. Paul frowned and walked over to her, giving her a quiet response and holding up the game board to her as explanation.  
I felt a pang of guilt, and nervousness. What would Karolina think of me refusing to entertain Paul? She looked up at me while speaking softly to Paul, making eye contact as she comforted him on my behalf. She smiled ruefully, as if to say Kids, am I right? Her damp hair dripped onto my shirt, leaving an air of casualness despite my tense emotions. I breathed a bit easier once I had her approval and offered her a tight smile.  
Vika flounced into the room, rubbing a towel furiously over her head. “Do you think the protestors will go to sleep? Or are these the hardcore, all-day protesters?” She gave me a chaste kiss on the cheek and flopped onto the couch, making herself comfortable as if she hadn’t steered the conversation in the room to something that no one wanted to talk about.  
No one answered her at first. I turned my head to the windows, but the curtains had been pulled across them. “I don’t know,” I said. “People really liked Rufus. And this all happened so suddenly. One day he’s just your average asshole, the next day he’s a corrupt Strigoi loving mobster.” There was no malice in my voice. I didn’t see the point in hating Rufus, not now that he’s out of our lives for good.  
“Well, they need to accept the truth. Those fucking idiots are protesting you for no good reason.”  
“Aye!” Dimitri shouted, at the same time Olena yelled “Vika!” placing her hands over Zoya’s ears and nodding toward Paul. “Watch your language.” Vika rolled her eyes at her mother. I suppressed a laugh. Vika’s faith in me and petulant attitude made everything feel just a bit more normal. Olena sighed, “Viktoria is right. The protesters should back off you. You’ve done nothing wrong, Rose.” I nodded, a tight smile on my facade.  
“Why don’t we watch a movie? Paul, you chose,” I said to change the subject. Paul leapt for the coffee table, seeking the remote control “Okay!” I settled on the floor next to Dimitri, my mug of tea now cold. Dimitri pulled me closer to him and kissed the top of my head. I let myself relax into his embrace, allowing the ease that came with his proximity. Paul scrolled through the Netflix selections, trying multiple times to pick a rated R horror film. Most of the movies got shot down by Vika or myself for having boring descriptions. Eventually Paul realized that we didn’t really care what movie he chose, and we were just teasing him.  
We all agreed on Inside Out, and Paul ran over to the lightswitch. He cast us in relative darkness, the room lit by the blue hue on the screen of a movie about to start. I relaxed even more when the music started and Amy Poehler’s voice started the opening dialogue of the movie. With the movie on, I was safe from the Belikovs trying to cheer me up and tell me how great I am.  
Olena was right about one thing, though. I haven’t done anything wrong. The problem, I realized, is that I haven’t done much at all. Randall’s words echoed: You’ll be nothing. They won’t even want you.  
And then I felt the hum in my veins. I was tired, but this was a different kind of energy. Maybe it was the stress, or the grief. I knew I hated feeling depressed; it always seemed like a waste of emotion. And this time was no different. I could feel the stirring deep inside me. My pain was evolving into something that made me feel like fighting. I was going to turn the tables.  
Starting tonight, in my home with my extended family sitting here, I promised myself that I will become the princess Queen Tatiana wanted me to be. A princess that Tasha wouldn’t have been able to touch. One that Rufus and Randall would have feared, a princess that won’t bring her best friend’s monarchy down, but make it stronger.  
A princess to prove my protesters wrong.  
Every last one of them.


	28. Turning Tables

Rose’s POV

I woke up to a sticky hand grabbing at my face and collarbone. “Aunty Rose…” a small voice whispered. I opened one eye, taking in my “nephew”, who had something purple resembling jelly covering his mouth. Dimitri groaned and rolled over next to me. “What is it, Paul?” Dimitri grumbled, his voice low and hoarse.  
Paul flicked his eyes to Dimitri, looking apprehensive. He was probably told to not bother his uncle Dimka.  
“Babushka told me to tell aunty Rose the queen is here to see her.”  
During the movie last night, I texted Lissa last night that I needed to see her, so here she is. I had made a mental list of all my problems. Well, at least the ones that I could do something about. It didn’t take me long to figure out what I wanted to do.  
“Thank you,” I said. “Can you tell her I’ll be out in a minute?” He nodded eagerly and ran out of the room, leaving the door open. I groaned and heaved myself out of bed to close the door. I could hear voices out in the living room, speaking too loud for anyone to sleep through. It seems Dimitri and I were the last to wake up.  
Dimitri was sitting up now, rubbing his eyes. I picked up his pants, which he had discarded on the floor before joining me in bed last night, and tossed them at him. He caught them and promptly threw them on the ground by the bed.  
“No meetings scheduled today,” I said, taking my sleep shorts off. “But I’m sure the others will call a session anyway, given what happened.”  
Dimitri nodded lazily and yawned. It was one of those rare mornings when I was energized immediately, and Dimitri was the one that was hard to get out of bed. It didn’t happen often, and when it did, I tried to give him the same patience he offers me on a daily basis. The problem is, I’m not that patient.  
I threw on a simple outfit of black slacks and a black blouse. I wanted to wear mourning colors without actually looking like I was mourning. I leaned down to kiss Dimitri on the cheek, he had laid back down with the promise that he would “get up soon.” I stroked his cheek, thinking briefly of what this lifestyle had done to Dimitri.  
He was a fighter, a warrior. And now he’s stuck guarding me because he loves me, even though it’s useless to guard a fully trained guardian. I thought of my plans for our future. Some of which he would like, others would cause a fight with him.  
In the living room, Lissa was sitting with Zoya in her lap, smiling at the baby. The conversation in the room stopped when I walked in. Everyone recognized that I was Princess Hathaway right now, not aunty Rose. Olena was sitting with her back stick-straight. The rest of the Belikov family already grew comfortable in Lissa’s presence, but Olena remained prim and proper.  
Lissa smiled at me and handed the baby back to Karolina. She tilted her head to my office door. “Shall we?” she asked. I nodded and lead the way.  
Christian was standing in my office, looking at a picture of the four of us at Christmas. I paused, suddenly nervous. Lissa closed the door behind her. This was not expected.  
“Christian…” I didn’t know what to say, so I didn’t say anything. He looked up at me, and I noticed the red rings under his eyes. He didn’t say anything either, he just stood there, regarding me as if he didn’t know me. I could feel my heart cracking. I didn’t think I was ready to face him again.  
Lissa sat in a chair, crossing her legs and folding her hands in her lap, looking like a businesswoman. “Christian wants to ask for a favor. We need your blessing before taking it to council.” I raised my eyebrows at Christian, but he leveled me with those emotionless eyes.  
I chose to focus on Lissa instead. “What do you need?” I asked. Lissa and Christian shared a brief look, he nodded at her, pushing her forward.  
“Christian wants… We want… to have a funeral for Tasha.”  
It only took me a moment to decide. “Done.” I said. “Whatever it takes, I’m on board.”  
Christian seemed surprised, which bothered me. Did he think that low of me? Lissa, too, seemed shocked that I didn’t need any convincing. He looked like he was prepared to fight my decision, but by taking his side I’d disarmed him.  
“Well, good.” he said, reaching out to shake my hand. I stared at his hand for a moment longer than necessary. In the end I shook his hand, feeling incredibly awkward the entire time.  
Christian left, probably wanting to spend as little time as possible with me. The door clicked softly shut behind him.  
“Sorry to bombard you with that,” Lissa said, “But Christian needs some closure, and he asked to come over today when he saw your text… Just give him time,” Lissa said, her voice softening when she took in my demeanor. She transformed from the business woman and becoming the Lissa I know and love.  
“He knows it’s not your fault she’s dead,” Lissa continued. “But he’s beyond reason right now. Just give him some time to grieve her and he’ll be ready to be your friend again.”  
Even if what she was saying was true, I knew that there was no coming back from what happened. My relationship with Christian would never be the same, carefree, often insulting kinship it used to be.  
“Thank you, Rose.”  
“For what?”  
“For agreeing to help us put Tasha to rest. It will help Christian move on.”  
I nodded, sitting down across Lissa. “You know that even with my help, it probably won’t happen. She’s a traitor to the crown, the council won’t want to allow her to have a funeral.”  
“I know, and so does he. But it means the world to him that you’re willing to try, even if he doesn’t show it.”  
Lissa grabbed my hand, squeezing it. “It’ll be okay,” she said reassuringly. I didn’t realize how worried I was until she said those words. “I don’t know, Liss. I wouldn’t blame him if he hated me forever.”  
She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “He won’t. He doesn’t hate you now, he’s just struggling.”  
I felt something in the bond then, a tug of guilt. “You’re lying.” I said.  
She sucked in a huge breath. “Okay, maybe he does hate you, but I know, I know that he can’t hate you forever. He’ll get over this,” she said, a tinge of desperation in her voice. She couldn’t stand the idea of her best friend and boyfriend hating each other.  
I stood up, anxious to change the subject. Thankfully, Lissa sensed that.  
“What did you want to talk about? Your text made it seem urgent.”  
“Are the protesters still outside?” I asked, sidestepping.\  
Lissa nodded, “Yeah. They have signs now.” I flinched. I never thought I would see the day people would picket against me. I took a moment to process this information.  
I would need Lissa behind me every step of the way.  
“I thought that I became a princess when I was sworn in by Tatianna,” I said, rolling my eyes.  
“I would go to meetings, I would have tea with Tatianna and learn the ins and outs of politics, but I was never prepared for this.”  
“Rose, you’ve done a great-”  
I held up my hand to stop her. “I haven’t been a princess at all. Not really. No, listen,” Lissa was ready to jump in and tell me how great I am. “I want to do what Tatianna told me to do. She made me a princess so that I could show the Strigoi that the dhampirs are powerful, and united. She wanted me to stand up for the dhampirs whose rights were being taken away from them by our own Moroi.”  
I walked over to the desk, grabbing paper and a pen. “I need to set an example for the dhampirs, and instead I’ve been a lame duck on my council seat. I live in my nice apartment I did nothing to earn and I yell at Prince’s on the council, but I have done nothing until yesterday.”  
Lissa narrowed her eyes at me, “What are you saying, Rose?”  
I smiled, feeling a rush of excitement course through me. “I’m stepping up. Yesterday was the first time I was truly a leader, Liss. I don’t care what the protesters say, I’m going to make my people proud that I was the first dhampir monarch.”  
I wrote down the names of councilmen and women who I thought would support me and my first idea: Conta, Zeklos, Ivashkov?, Szelsky, Voda. Writing their names made nothing official, but it made the small step of progress feel real.  
I had wanted to start a guardians committee a long time ago, but many on the council warned me against it, saying that starting committees was a pain in the neck. Back then, I was willing to follow their direction and do as they say.  
I knew that to be more than a pencil-pusher, I would need to stop listening to what others had to say. I could take their advice, of course. But I was done doing what the Moroi wanted. I would lead for the dhampirs now.  
Luckily, to create a committee, I didn’t need a majority vote, but the more support I had in creating it, the more successful it would be.  
“I’m going to start a committee, for guardian’s rights. I’ll head it, I just need some council members on my side, and I’m sure Hans will help run it. I want to organize volunteers who will actively hunt Strigoi as part of the committee, and I already have a guardian in mind who can lead them.” I held out the paper and pen to Lissa. “Will you support it?” I asked.  
Lissa barely hesitated, offering me the same support I offered her and Christian earlier. She signed her name on the paper. “Of course, Rose. It sounds like a lot for one committee, maybe we should split the fighting faction and the guardian’s rights into separate committees. We can work out the details later, and I’ll help you pitch it to the council. She looked at the names I’d jotted down. “I think I can also get Prince Lazar on board, if you let me talk to him.”  
“That’d be perfect. Oh, I wanted to talk to you about one more thing, while you’re here.”  
Lissa nodded, handing me back the piece of paper with the names. I set it on the desk, leaning on it and crossing my arms in front of me. “We need to tell the council about the pregnant dhampir couple.”  
Lissa raised her eyebrows, “You mean Wade and Taylor?”  
I nodded. “Yes, and we have to tell them sooner rather than later; sometime this week.” I could see Lissa’s face lighting up, how excited she was getting. I rushed to keep her in check, holding up a finger and waving it for emphasis. “But we won’t bring up my having kids at all. Don’t even mention it to the council. They can make all the inferences they like; all we’re doing is telling them what you and Sonya discovered about Spirit magic. If I happen to get pregnant by Dimitri, way in the future, they’ll know how it happened.”  
My strict tone did nothing to calm Lissa down. I saw this as a task that needed handling, since we couldn’t possibly hide Taylor’s pregnancy. Lissa, on the other hand, saw this as me coming one step closer to accepting motherhood.  
She clapped her hands together and hopped in place. “We’ll tell them at the meeting on Friday!”  
I shook my head, but I couldn’t help the smile that grew on my face. “You’re ridiculous,” I said.  
“So, we’ll bring up a funeral for Tasha, we’ll talk to our friends on the council about supporting the guardian’s committee, and we’ll announce Taylor’s pregnancy.” She held up three fingers, ticking them off as she recapped.  
I nodded along in agreement. Lissa was suddenly less giddy than before, but happy nonetheless. “How about I stop by for dinner? We can go over plans for the committee; responsibilities and such.”  
“Sounds good, I’ll see you tonight, Liss.” she kissed my cheek and left, waving bye to the Belikovs on her way out.  
I stood in the doorway of my office, making three mental checks off my list. Supporting a funeral service for Tasha wasn’t part of my plan, but I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to mend bridges with Christian. I only had two more things I wanted to tackle today.  
The living room was abuzz. Dimitri was awake now, bouncing Zoya on his lap, singing a Russian tune. Vika was chasing Paul, Paul used the couch to launch himself off and went running into the kitchen, screaming with joy. When I heard a crash from their direction, I felt more resolute in my decision.  
“Olena?”  
She looked immediately apologetic, “I’m sorry Rose, I’ll replace anything they break. VIKA! Calm that boy down!”  
“Can I talk to you? In my office?” I didn’t say it with an attitude, or anything scary, but the words are enough to put someone on edge.  
Her head snapped back to me, as did most of the rest of the room, including Dimitri’s. I ignored them. She tried to pretend she wasn’t worried, but I could see the strain in her smile.  
I closed the door on us, knowing that the family would try to overhear our conversation.  
“Rose, I’m sorry about Paul, he’s just young and rowdy.”  
I shook my head, “This isn’t about Paul. Well, not really.” I sat in the chair behind the desk and leaned back, trying my best to seem at ease so that I could make her feel better. Olena sat down across me, looking around the office.  
“How would you feel about moving to America?” I asked. Olena brought her gaze back to me.  
“What? Why?” she asked.  
“Oh c’mon, you’re here all the time. You’ve spent more than a month here in the last six months, and I know it tears you up to leave. You want all your children in one spot, which I understand. I’ve actually thought a lot about this,” well, for about an hour last night, at least. “Viktoria could go back to Russia to finish her last year of school, but come here during breaks. Sonja and Karolina could get jobs here at court, and Paul can either go to St. Basil’s or to an American school, that’d be up to Karolina.”  
Olena seemed dazed, as if the thought had really never crossed her mind. Before she could turn me down, I continued with my reasons why she should stay. “Doesn’t Karolina’s boyfriend work in America for half the year, anyway? So Paul and Zoya wouldn’t see their father any less. Besides,” I said, knowing this last bit would push Olena over the edge, “Sonja hates working at the grocery store. She wants a dhampir-worthy job, and she can get that here at court.”  
She blinked several times. “It does sound… nice. But, sweetie, our lives our in Baia! We can’t just leave everything!”  
I sighed, frustrated that I couldn’t just get my way and be done with it. “I know Dimitri misses you all when you’re not here, but he’s a dedicated guardian and he would never leave his job to go back to Baia.” Olena looked down with the weight of my words. “Just… think about it, okay? I want you to move here, and I know Dimitri does, too.”  
She nodded solemnly.  
I resisted the urge to rub my hand together. Another task down, one more to go.  
We walked out of my office together, and Olena went straight to Yeva for advice. Dimitri quirked an eyebrow, silently demanding an explanation.  
I went up to him, reaching for Zoya. She was pretty cute, but I loved that I could hand her to someone else as soon as she did something gross. I bounced her on my hip and made a bright face at her. “I just asked your mom to move the family to America,” I said in a low voice, keeping my eyes trained on the baby. I popped my eyes open and went “Oooh!”  
Dimitri visibly relaxed. “Really? What did my mother say?”  
“She’ll think about it,” I said. Zoya started to squirm in my arms, so I passed her back to Dimitri, leaning in to kiss him as I did so.  
I was about to warn him that I needed to talk to him, but that would only put him on edge, and he was enjoying his time with his family.  
He smiled at his niece, which made me happy. If he could get his fill of baby fever from his nieces and nephew, then I didn’t have to worry about the baby pressure for a while. Yes, having the Belikovs move to America would solve a lot of problems for me. Mostly I just wanted them to have their own place. I wasn’t suited for the European trend of having an entire family cramped into a small living area; I needed a lot of personal space.  
And on the topic of personal space, if I was going to start a committee, I would need to use the apartment as my headquarters, at least for now. The courthouse only had thirteen office spaces for the original thirteen council members, each complete with a staff workspace and kitchenette. No plans had been made to make an official office for me, and until now, it didn’t bother me that I didn’t have my own staff.  
Now I would be needed a staff, and the apartment would have to be our office until one was added on to the courthouse.  
“Maybe we should rent a couple hotel rooms for your family,” I said. Dimitri furrowed his brow, “Why would we do that?”  
I wondered how Dimitri would react to me making grand plans without first talking to him. I had done a complete 360 from last night, and Dimitri had no idea what was about to come.  
“I’m going to need the apartment space, for work.”  
Dimitri regarded me carefully. I could practically see the gears working in his head; he was decided if this was a battle he wanted to fight.  
“Work?” he demanded. What came up since last night, what don’t I know? Is what he was really asking.  
“Yep. Work stuff. Look, we can talk more about this later. I don’t need them out of here by tonight or anything, but they can’t stay for weeks like they did last time.” I said firmly.  
Dimitri nodded, giving in and smiling sheepishly, “Fair enough. I’ll talk to mamma.”  
That went pretty well, I though. I was dreading his reaction when I tell him I have to fire him.

It didn’t go well at all, just as I thought.  
We were in our bedroom; I’d asked him for a moment alone after lunch, which we had to stay inside for thanks to the protestors still being outside. Dimitri said their numbers were going down, but they could be there for a day or two more before giving up.  
I started our conversation with the easy stuff; telling him my plans to become a better princess. He agreed with me on everything, up until I told him I wanted his resignation.  
“NO.” he spat, his face turning red.  
“Dimitri, listen-”  
“No! I’m not resigning! And you’re not firing me. It’s not going to happen.”  
“It has to!” Dimitri tried to walk out of the room but I placed myself in between him and the door. “Don’t you get it? How can I be leading the guardians if I have a guardian? That’s like Abraham Lincoln owning a slave.”  
“That doesn’t make sense.”  
“Whatever, you know what I mean. You can’t be my guardian anymore.”  
There was fire in Dimitri’s eyes as he stepped forward, our chests almost touching. I had to tilt my head back to look him in the eyes. “And why not?” he challenged.  
“Because I’m supposed to be strong,” I pleaded, my voice cracking. Dimitri was taken aback by my response, and stared at me in silence. I didn’t realize how much this meant to me until this moment. But I had realized a lot about myself in the last 48 hours.  
I had been living a dream, reaping the benefits of royal life and freedom. Now my eyes were open, and I saw all the things I had been doing wrong.  
“And I am strong! But no one will see that if I have a 6 foot 7 giant following around!”  
Dimitri clenched and unclenched his jaw. I was breathing heavy, waiting for Dimitri to see reason. “After everything that’s happened to you,” he said in a low, dangerous voice. “You can’t expect me to stop protecting you.”  
My shoulders dropped. “Dimitri,” I sighed in defeat. “I’m not in danger on a day to day basis. Nothing happens when I’m at the courthouse or when I’m here in the apartment. We’ll always protect each other, that’s a given. But I need a boyfriend by my side, not a guardian…  
“Yesterday, when I went into the fray with the other guardians, that was me being a leader. I worked with the dhampirs to do what we’ve been trained to do. I’m not saying I’ll jump into every fight there is, but I can’t lead the guardians if I’m disconnected from who they are and what they do.”  
“And I’m not just asking you to go find another assignment. I already have a plan for you.”  
Dimitri raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t speaking, which was a sign that he was still angry, but at least he was willing to listen.  
“The committee I’m starting… I want a branch of it to be for guardians to go on preemptive attacks and rescue missions. Kind of like the army, but ours will be purely voluntary. We’ll need a guardian who knows what he’s doing to lead them.”  
Dimitri gawked at me, “You want to make a dhampir army?”  
I shrugged. “Yes.” I said simply. “And I want you to be my first general.”  
His entire demeanor changed. I’d completely stumped him with my offer that he forgot we were arguing.  
Dimitri looked at the ground for a long time, and I feared the zen master in him would win out and he’d refuse me. But then he looked up at me and I saw a spark in his eyes, the same spark in his eyes as the day we met. I knew that I had won, because deep down, Dimitri and I were the same. We both craved the action and honor that came with protecting the defenseless and he knew that there was no honor in wasting his life at my side when others needed him more.  
He swore in Russian, smiling in disbelief. He picked me up, twirling me in a circle. I squealed and wrapped my arms around his neck. I could feel all the dominos falling into place, and my heart was swelling with pure joy. He put me down, bringing our mouths together. I pulled away to look him in the eye, to burn this moment into my head, because I never wanted to forget the day I got my shit together and started building a future that worked for the both of us.  
“You’re absolutely insane, Roza.”  
“You wouldn’t want me any other way, General.”


End file.
